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PASTORAL  EPISTLES 


The  Pastoral  Epistles  of  Paul 

and  I  and  II  Peter,  Jude, 

and  I,  II  and  III  John 


y 


B.  H.  CARROLL,  D.D.,  LL.D., 

Late  President  of  Southwestern  Baptist 
Theological  Seminary 


EDITED  BY 

J.  B.  CRANFILL.  LL.D. 


New  York        Chicago       Toronto 

Fleming  H.  Revell  Company 

London   and   Edinburgh 


Copyright,  1915,  by 
FLEMING  H.  REVELL  COMPANY 


New  York:  158  Fifth  Avenue 
Chicago:  125  N.  Wabash  Ave. 
Toronto:  25  Richmond  St.,  W. 
London:  21  Paternoster  Square 
Edinburgh:    100  Princess   Street 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I  Introduction  r 

II  Analysis  I  Timothy it 

III  Paul's  Christian  Experience 25 

IV  Spheres  of  Men 38 

V  The  Mission  OF  THE  Church 55 

VI  The  Mystery  of  Lawlessness 68 

VII  Internal  Church  Affairs 79 

VIII  Internal  Church  Affairs  (concluded)  94 

IX  Letter  to  Titus — Analysis 109 

X  Exposition  of  Titus 119 

XI  Introduction  to  II  Timothy 134 

XII  A  Faithful  Minister 144 

XIII  A  Faithful  Ministry 156 

XIV  The  Last  Day 169 

XV  Paul's  Final  Word 179 

XVI  The  Life  of  Peter 187 

XVII  The  Life  of  Peter  (concluded) 198 

XVIII  Introduction  to  I  Peter 211 

XIX  Undeserved  Christian  Suffering 226 

XX  What  to  Put  Away 241 

XXI  The  Second  Advent 255 

XXII  Introduction  to  II  Peter 267 

XXIII  Exposition  of  II  Peter 279 

XXIV  Introduction  to  Jude 288 

XXV  Exposition  of  the  Book  of  Jude 304 

XXVI  First  Letter  of  John 324 

XXVII  First  Letter  of  John  (continued) ....  334 

XXVIII  First  Letter  of  John  (concluded) 347 

XXIX  Second  and  Third  Letters  of  John.  .  364 


INTRODUCTION  TO  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

IN  this  volume  our  great  interpreter  of  God's  Word 
lays  especial  stress  upon  many  vital  themes  and  doc- 
trines. Particularly  does  he  discuss  John  3 : 5  and 
its  related  passages  in  the  epistles  of  John,  the  inter- 
pretation of  which  is  a  part  of  this  discussion. 

From  time  immemorial  the  meaning  of  the  Lord's 
expression  "born  of  water  and  the  Spirit"  has  been  a 
source  of  much  interest  and  controversy.  Thousands 
of  pages  have  been  written  in  exposition  of  Christ's 
words  to  Nicodemus.  Dr.  Carroll,  in  the  pages  that 
follow,  throws  a  flood  of  light  upon  this  passage  and 
so  clearly  elucidates  its  meaning  that  he  leaves  nothing 
to  be  desired. 

There  are  two  other  subjects  covered  by  this  volume 
that  have  ever  been  of  absorbing  interest  to  students 
of  the  Bible.  One  is  the  unpardonable  sin  and  the  other 
is  the  expression  in  I  John  5:18:  "We  know  that  who- 
soever is  begotten  of  God  sinneth  not"  The  desire  for 
light  on  these  great  questions — light  that  will  give  endur- 
ing anchorage  to  the  enquiring  soul — is  as  universal  as  is 
the  reverent  study  of  God's  Word. 

Without  hesitation  or  equivocation  Dr.  Carroll  inter- 
prets these  difficult  and  perplexing  passages  and  I  com- 
mend this  book  to  all  who  seek  for  help  on  these  heart- 
searching  themes. 

The  author  brushes  aside  many  erroneous  theories 
concerning  III  John  and  shows  conclusively  that  it  was 
written,  not  to  a  church,  but  to  Cyria,  a  woman.     He 


THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

expresses  gratification  that  this  is  so,  and  his  interpreta- 
tion of  this  brief  letter  is  of  abiding  interest. 

As  a  whole  this  volume  compares  most  favorably  with 
its  predecessors.  It  is  rich  in  its  interpretative  analyses 
of  the  Scriptures  discussed,  and  cannot  fail  to  be  edify- 
ing and  inspiring  to  its  every  reader.  In  traversing  its 
rich  treasures  my  heart  took  hold  anew  of  these  words 
of  the  disciples  who,  on  the  Emmaus  road,  talked  with 
Jesus :  "Was  not  our  heart  burning  within  us  while  He 
spake  to  us  in  the  way,  while  He  opened  to  us  the 
Scriptures  ?"    (Luke  24 :  32.) 

But  I  shall  not  detain  the  reader  with  an  extended 
discussion  of  this  book.  In  the  most  engaging  and 
convincing  way  it  speaks  for  itself.  It  will  charm  the 
reader,  it  will  thrill  the  student,  it  will  gladden  the 
heart  of  God's  child.  May  that  Spirit  who  inspired  the 
men  who  wrote  His  Book,  and  who,  as  I  reverently 
believe,  guided  the  interpreter  of  that  Word  in  the  prepa- 
ration of  this  volume,  bless  its  every  page  and  cause  it 
to  glorify  Christ's  name  till  He  comes  again. 

Dallas,  Texas.  J.  B.  Cranfill. 


I 

INTRODUCTION  TO  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

THE  last  group  of  Paul's  letters  consists  of  I 
Timothy,  Titus,  II  Timothy,  commonly  called 
the  "Pastoral  Epistles,"  not  because  addressed  to 
pastors,  but  because  they  relate  to  the  flock.  Though 
addressed  to  individuals,  the  letters  are  ecclesiastical.  So 
far  as  New  Testament  records  show,  neither  Timothy 
nor  Titus  was  ever  a  pastor  in  the  ordinary  sense,  but 
evangelists  acting  temporarily  here  and  there  as  special 
apostolic  delegates,  according  to  the  passing  emergency. 
In  this  case,  Titus  was  left  in  the  Island  of  Crete  and 
Timothy  at  Ephesus.  The  Anglican  Church  misinter- 
prets the  New  Testament  in  deriving  their  modern  bish- 
opric from  the  cases  of  Timothy  and  Titus.  Neither 
these  nor  any  other  apostolic  delegates,  and  there  were 
many,  ever  had  a  settled  diocese.  They  might  better  be 
counted  the  apostolic  staff,  sent  here  or  there,  in  any 
part  of  the  world,  for  a  few  days  only  or  for  a  longer 
time,  according  to  the  necessity.  Their  fields  of  labor 
were  shifted  at  the  apostolic  will,  and  wherever  sent  in 
the  name  of  the  apostle,  they  carried  his  apostolic  au- 
thority. Even  in  the  brief  period  covered  by  these 
letters,  both  of  them  are  directed  again  to  far  distant 
fields. 

It  is  absurd  to  call  them  bishops,  in  either  the  New 
Testament  or  modern  sense.  In  the  New  Testament  the 
bishop  was  the  pastor  of  a  single  church.  In  our  day  a 
bishop  of  a  hierarchical  or  prelatical  denomination  has 

1 


2'  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

a  settled  diocese — metropolis,  county,  province,  or  state. 
As  Timothy  and  Titus  (with  others  named  in  these  let- 
ters :  for  example,  Luke,  Trophimus,  Artemas,  Tychicus, 
Zenas,  Apollos,  Erastus,  Demas,  Crescens,  and  Mark) 
were  evangelists,  we  need  at  the  threshold  of  this  dis- 
cussion to  consider  that  office  somewhat.  For  a  more 
elaborate  discussion,  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  au- 
thor's address  on  "The  Office  of  Evangelist,"  delivered 
before  the  Southern  Baptist  convention  in  May,  1907, 
and  published  by  its  Home  Mission  Board. 

Our  Lord  Himself  originated  the  office  when  He  ap- 
pointed the  seventy  to  go  before  His  face,  delegating  to 
them  His  own  power,  and  distinguished  it  from  the  office 
of  pastor  or  bishop.  The  pastor  had  charge  of  a  single 
flock;  the  evangelist  was  a  kingdom  officer,  though  like 
all  others,  set  in  the  church,  that  every  preacher  of 
whatever  kind  might  be  subject  to  some  definite  juris- 
diction. 

We  have  already  seen,  in  our  study  of  Ephesians,  that 
our  Lord  gave  apostles,  prophets,  evangelists,  pastors 
and  teachers.  Apostles  and  prophets  were  necessarily 
inspired ;  pastors  and  evangelists  might  be  only  illumined. 
Inspiration  qualified  to  speak  or  write  for  God.  Illu- 
mination qualified  to  interpret  the  inspired  teaching. 
Apostles  and  prophets  spoke  or  wrote  authoritatively 
for  God ;  evangelists  and  pastors  expounded  and  exe- 
cuted what  apostles  and  prophets  taught. 

Authenticity.  The  next  question  concerning  these  let- 
ters is  their  authenticity.  Are  they  veritable  letters  of 
the  Apostle  Paul?  The  consensus  of  Christendom  is 
that  they  are.  There  are  a  few  infidels  and  some  semi- 
infidels  holding  office  as  teachers  or  preachers  in  some 
State  denominations,  who  argue  that  they  were  written 
in  the  second  century  and  attributed  to  Paul  in  order  to 


THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES  3 

give  them  currency.  There  is  not  a  particle  of  real 
evidence  for  any  such  assertion.  Such  contention  re- 
sults from  radical  higher  criticism  run  mad. 

If  we  go  back  to  the  earliest  lists  of  Paul's  books  of 
which  we  have  any  account  at  all,  I  and  II  Timothy  and 
Titus  are  in  them.  When  we  go  back  to  the  earliest 
New  Testament  manuscripts,  Timothy  and  Titus  are  in 
them.  When  we  go  back  to  the  earliest  versions,  as 
the  Peshito  version,  we  find  these  letters  attributed  to 
Paul.  The  external  evidence  that  they  are  Paul's  is 
overwhelming.  It  is  really  not  worth  while  to  take  up 
any  more  time  discussing  the  authenticity  of  these  letters. 

Date.  The  question  of  the  date  of  these  letters  neces- 
sarily raises  a  prior  question,  namely,  was  there  a  second 
Roman  imprisonment?  If  the  imprisonment  of  Acts  28 
resulted  in  his  death,  then  we  must  put  these  letters,  in 
order  to  make  them  Pauline  letters,  at  a  much  earlier 
date  than  if  we  assume  that  he  escaped  from  that  im- 
prisonment. The  fact  that  Paul  did  escape  from  that 
imprisonment  rests  upon  two  kinds  of  evidence. 

The  unbroken  testimony  of  early  history,  and  the 
apostle's  own  testimony  in  these  letters,  are  alike  con- 
vincing. We  need  not  here  enter  into  the  church-history 
problem  as  to  whether  Paul  ever  fulfilled  the  purpose 
expressed  in  the  letter  to  the  Romans  to  visit  Spain,  nor 
the  more  improbable  conjecture  that  he  visited  Britain, 
but  it  is  evident  from  Philippians,  Philemon,  Colossians, 
and  Hebrews,  that  he  confidently  expected  a  speedy  re- 
lease from  the  Roman  imprisonment  recorded  in  Acts. 
And  it  is  certain  that  the  events  recorded  in  I  and  II 
Timothy  and  in  Titus  never  occurred  in  the  period  cov- 
ered by  the  book  of  Acts.  So  that  we  may  count  it  a 
settled  result  of  fair  Biblical  criticism  that  Paul  was 
acquitted  on  the  charges  which  first  held  him  bound  at 


4  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Rome,  and  whether  or  not  he  ever  visited  Spain  or 
Britain,  we  may  be  sure,  on  Biblical  evidence,  that  after 
his  release  he  did  make  an  extended  tour  over  his  old 
fields  of  labor  in  proconsular  Asia,  Macedonia  and 
Achaia. 

His  companions  on  this  tour — some  of  them  perhaps 
all  of  the  time,  all  of  them  some  of  the  time — were  Luke, 
Titus,  Timothy,  Tychicus,  Erastus,  Demas,  and  perhaps 
others.  While  the  order  of  his  travels  may  not  be  dog- 
matically affirmed,  the  following  may  be  accepted  as 
approximately  correct: 

1.  He  stopped  at  the  Island  of  Crete,  leaving  Titus 
as  his  delegate,  to  set  in  order  certain  irregularities  and 
heresies  there  (Titus  1:5),  and  later  ordered  him  to 
rejoin  him  at  Nicopolis,  where  Paul  expected  to  winter 
(Titus  3 :  12),  and  still  later  to  Dalmatia  (II  Tim.  4:  10). 

2.  Then  he  went  to  Ephesus,  where  he  found  Timothy, 
who  had  been  sent  from  Italy  with  the  letter  to  the 
Hebrews,  and  where  he  exercised  his  apostolic  authority 
on  two  heretics  (I  Tim.  1:20),  and  there  left  Timothy 
as  apostolic  delegate  (I  Tim.  1:3). 

3.  Thence  to  Macedonia  (I  Tim.  1:3),  where  prob- 
ably he  wrote  I  Timothy  and  Titus,  and  sends  Artemas 
or  Tychicus  to  Crete  with  the  letter  to  Titus  directing 
him  to  join  Paul  at  Nicopolis  for  the  winter  (Titus 
3:12). 

4.  He  returns  to  Ephesus  (I  Tim.  3:14),  where  he 
has  a  stormy  time  (H  Tim.  i :  15,  18;  4: 14).  He  found 
heresy  rampant  and  all  the  tide  against  him,  caused 
largely,  perhaps,  so  far  as  the  Jewish  and  Gnostic  ele- 
ments are  concerned,  by  his  recent  letter  to  the  Hebrews. 
From  the  storm  against  him  he  was  sheltered  in  the  house 
of  Onesiphorus  (II  Tim.  i :  16).  Perhaps  his  very  life 
was  imperiled,  and  so  he  hurried  to  Miletus. 


THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES  6 

5.  At  Miletus  he  left  Trophimus  sick  (II  Tim.  4:6). 

6.  Thence  to  Troas,  where,  perhaps  in  the  hurry  of 
flight,  he  leaves  with  Carpus  his  cloak  and  books  (II 
Tim.  4:13)- 

7.  Thence  to  Corinth,  where  he  left  Erastus  (II  Tim, 
4:20). 

8.  Thence  to  Nicopolis,  where  he  intended  to  winter 
(Titus  3: 12).  Here,  or  somewhere  in  that  section,  the 
Neronian  persecution  reaches  him.  Nero  had  set  fire  to 
Rome,  causing  the  most  awful  conflagration  known  in 
the  annals  of  time.  It  caused  such  indignation  that  it 
was  necessary  for  him  to  put  the  blame  on  somebody 
else,  so  he  accused  the  Christians  of  setting  fire  to  Rome. 
That  brought  about  the  bloodiest  persecution  of  Chris- 
tians known  to  history,  if,  perhaps,  we  except  the  perse- 
cution of  Phillip  II  in  Holland.  In  some  of  its  horrors 
it  has  never  been  equaled. 

Most  diligent  search  was  made  for  anybody  that  would 
take  the  name  of  Christ.  From  Rome  the  persecution 
spread,  and  about  this  time  it  struck  Paul  over  there  in 
Achaia  or  in  Nicopolis.  When  Paul  was  arrested,  Demas, 
one  of  his  lieutenants,  got  scared  and  left  him,  as  he 
writes  to  Timothy:  "Demas  hath  forsaken  me,  having 
loved  this  present  world,  and  hath  gone  to  Thessalonica." 
Paul  had  sent  Titus  to  Dalmatia  and  Crescens  to  Galatia ; 
Trophimus  had  been  left  sick  at  Miletus,  so  Luke  is  his 
only  companion.    They  are  arrested  and  carried  to  Rome. 

When  he  is  brought  before  Roman  judges,  he  says 
that  nobody  stood  by  him.  It  was  very  different  when 
he  was  there  the  first  time ;  two  great  church  delegations 
came  out  and  met  him  before  he  reached  the  city.  But 
now,  with  the  Christians  under  the  ban,  when  to  acknowl- 
edge the  name  of  Christ  meant  the  most  awful  death, 
matters  were  different.     Afterwards  he  says  that  only 


6  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Luke  stood  with  him  at  the  examining  trial.  This  is  not 
the  final  trial,  but  the  trial  for  commitment.  He  was 
committed  and  taken  to  prison  to  await  the  final  trial, 
and  he  never  escaped.  Under  such  conditions,  winter 
coming  on,  having  left  Troas  in  a  hurry  without  his  cloak 
and  books,  he  is  imprisoned.  He  has  nothing  to  read. 
He  sends  Tychicus  to  Ephesus  to  take  Timothy's  place 
and  urges  Timothy  to  join  him  at  Rome;  to  come  by 
Troas  and  get  his  cloak  and  books.  The  Romans  made 
few  provisions  for  the  comfort  of  prisoners  under  seri- 
ous charges.  They  were  shut  up  in  a  bare  cell.  Paul 
wants  his  manuscripts,  and  he  tells  Timothy  to  bring 
Mark  back  with  him,  that  he  needs  him.  Whether  or 
not  they  reached  him  before  his  martyrdom  we  do  not 
know. 

Before  we  take  up  the  letters  to  Timothy,  I  will  give 
a  connected  Biblical  history  of  Timothy,  as  follows: 

1.  His  early  training.  H  Tim.  3:  15:  "And  that  from 
a  babe  thou  hast  known  the  sacred  writings  which  are 
able  to  make  thee  wise  unto  salvation  through  faith  which 
is  in  Jesus  Christ."  As  his  mother  was  a  Jewess,  he 
was  from  infancy  instructed  in  the  Old  Testament 
scriptures. 

2.  His  conversion  to  Christianity.  He  was  converted 
under  Paul's  preaching.  In  I  Tim.  i :  2  Paul  says,  "Unto 
Timothy  my  true  child  in  the  faith" ;  again  in  II  Tim. 
1 : 2  he  calls  him  his  "beloved  child."  His  conversion 
followed  that  of  his  grandmother,  Lois,  and  his  mother, 
Eunice  (II  Tim.  1:5).  This  conversion  occurred  on 
Paul's  first  missionary  tour  (Acts  14:6,  7).  The  relating 
of  Timothy's  Christian  experience  before  the  church 
made  a  profound  impression,  as  Paul  referring  to  it  says, 
"Thou  didst  confess  the  good  confession  in  the  sight  of 
many  witnesses"   (I  Tim.  6:12). 


THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES  7 

3.  His  ordination  to  the  office  of  evangelist,  to  be 
Paul's  companion  as  Barnabas  had  been.  The  scriptures 
bearing  on  this  are  Acts  16:  1-3;  I  Tim.  i :  18;  4:  14;  II 
Tim.  1:6;  4:5.  From  which  it  appears  that  as  the 
Spirit  signified  to  prophets  that  Paul  and  Barnabas  be 
set  apart  to  the  foreign  mission  work  (Acts  13: 1-2),  so 
now  the  same  Spirit,  through  some  prophet,  Paul  himself 
or  Silas,  directed  the  ordination  of  Timothy  to  the  same 
work.  And  as  all  the  neighboring  churches  highly  rec- 
ommended Timothy  for  the  work,  he  was  solemnly  and 
impressively  ordained  by  the  laying  on  of  hands  of  the 
presbytery,  one  of  whom  was  Paul  himself.  And  that 
through  Paul's  laying  on  of  hands  there  came  the  same 
remarkable  gifts  noted  in  Acts  8:17;  19:5. 

4.  His  labors  ivith  Paul.  In  general  terms  II  Tim,  3 : 
lo-ii.  More  particularly  Timothy  was  with  Paul  in  all 
the  history  set  forth  in  Acts  16,  17:  1-14  at  Philippi  and 
Thessalonica,  and  Berea.  Here  Timothy  was  left  (Acts 
17:  14),  but  rejoined  Paul  at  Athens,  and  from  that  point 
was  sent  back  to  Thessalonica  (Acts  17:15,  16  and 
I  Thess.  3:2).  He  rejoined  Paul  at  Corinth,  bringing 
the  news  that  occasioned  the  first  letter  to  the 
Thessalonians  (Acts  18:5  and  I  Thess.  1:1).  So 
both  with  Silas  were  associated  in  that  letter,  as  well 
as  in  the  second  letter  written  also  from  Corinth 
(II  Thess.  1:1). 

The  record  is  silent  as  to  Timothy's  accompanying 
Paul  to  Syria,  Jerusalem,  and  Antioch  (Acts  18: 18-22), 
But  we  certainly  find  him  with  Paul  on  the  third  mis- 
sionary tour  at  Ephesus,  from  which  place  he  is  sent 
into  Macedonia  (Acts  19:22),  and  from  thence  to 
Corinth  (I  Cor.  16: 10),  Joining  Paul  in  Macedonia,  he 
is  associated  with  him  in  the  second  letter  to  the  Corin- 
thians (II  Cor.  1:1). 


8  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

He  certainly  accompanied  Paul  to  Greece  (Acts  20: 
2-3),  and  goes  with  Paul  back  to  Macedonia.  In  Paul's 
last  visit  to  Syria  he  sent  Timothy  with  others  ahead  of 
him  to  Troas  (Acts  20:  3-5),  and  Timothy  was  left  there 
in  Asia.  There  is  no  further  account  of  Timothy  in 
Acts.  But  when  Paul,  arrested  at  Jerusalem,  imprisoned 
two  years  at  Cesarea,  finally  reaches  Rome,  Timothy 
joins  him  there,  for  he  is  associated  with  Paul  in  the 
letters  from  Rome  (Phil.  1:1;  Philemon  i;  Col.  1:1). 
His  temporary  imprisonment,  perhaps,  accounts  for  the 
absence  of  his  name  in  the  address  of  the  letters  to  the 
Ephesians,  but  soon  after  he  is  released  and  bears  the 
letter  to  the  Hebrews  (Heb.  13:23)  where  Paul  later 
finds  and  leaves  him  (I  Tim.  1:3).  Here  again  at 
Ephesus  Paul  finds  him  (I  Tim.  3: 14),  and  he  is  a  wit- 
ness of  the  stormy  time  Paul  had  there  (II  Tim.  1:15, 

18;  4:14)- 

After  Paul's  arrest  in  Nicopolis  of  Epirus,  or  some- 
where in  Achaia,  and  his  being  carried  to  Rome,  and  his 
commitment  trial,  he  writes  a  second  letter  to  Timothy 
(II  Tim.  1:1),  and  urges  him  to  come  to  Rome  speedily, 
before  winter,  bringing  his  cloak  and  books  left  at  Troas, 
and  also  Mark.  Paul  sent  Tychicus  to  take  Timothy's 
place  at  Ephesus  (II  Tim.  4:9,  11,  12,  13,  21).  We  do 
not  know  positively  whether  Timothy  reached  Rome 
before  Paul  was  executed. 

That  gives  a  connected  Biblical  history  of  Timothy, 
and  if  one  will  go  over  it  carefully  he  will  have  impressed 
upon  his  mind,  in  regard  to  Timothy,  two  things :  One  is 
that  by  the  direction  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  Timothy  was 
elected  to  be  Paul's  companion  in  the  place  of  Barnabas, 
and  associated  with  him  in  his  letters  and  labors,  and 
also  that  he,  as  an  apostolic  delegate,  was  the  most 
faithful  and  useful  of  all  of  Paul's"  corps  of  evangelists. 


THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES  9 

So  that  the  order  of  the  scriptures  touching  Timothy's 
life,  in  summary,  is: 

1.  Early  training:    II  Tim.  3:15. 

2.  Conversion:     I  Tim.  1:2;  II  Tim.  1:2,  5;  6:12. 

3.  Ordination:  Acts  16:1-3;  I  Tim.  1:18;  4:14;  H  Tim. 
1:6;  4:5- 

4.  Labors  with  Paul:  II  Tim.  3:10-11;  Acts  16:1-17;  17:14; 
17:15,  16;  I  Thess.  3:2;  Acts  18:5;  I  Thess.  1:1;  II  Thess. 
1:1;  Acts  19:22;  I  Cor.  16:10;  II  Cor.  i  :i ;  Acts  20:2-3  with 
Rom.  16:21;  Acts  20:3-5;  Phil.  1:1;  Philemon  i;  Col.  1:1;  Phil. 
2:19;  Heb.  13:23;  I  Tim.  1:3;  3:i4;  H  Tim.  1:15,  18;  4:14; 
4:9,  11-13,  21. 

In  these  letters  we  bid  farewell  to  Paul.  In  his  first 
group  of  letters,  I  and  II  Thessalonians,  we  have  studied 
eschatology;  in  his  second  group,  I  and  II  Corinthians, 
Galatians,  and  Romans,  we  have  seen  in  I  Corinthians 
the  disorders  of  a  New  Testament  church,  learned  the 
place  and  signification  of  miraculous  spiritual  gifts,  and 
studied  the  great  argument  on  the  resurrection  of  the 
dead.  In  II  Corinthians  we  have  heard  the  vindication 
of  his  apostolic  claims.  In  Galatians  and  Romans  we 
have  had  the  doctrine  of  justification  by  faith.  In  the 
third  group,  Philippians,  Philemon,  Colossians,  Ephesians, 
and  Hebrews :  we  have  found  in  Philemon  Christianity's 
attitude  to  the  then  world-wide  institution  of  slavery ;  in 
Philippians,  Colossians,  and  Ephesians,  we  found  a  great 
advance  in  the  plan  of  salvation  and  in  the  meaning  of 
the  word  "church,"  and  have  learned  the  finalities  on 
the  nature,  person,  offices,  and  relations  of  our  Lord.  In 
Hebrews  we  have  learned  the  superiorities  of  the  New 
Covenant. 

Now  in  this  last  group,  I  Timothy,  Titus,  and  II  Tim- 
othy, we  find  the  Christian's  "vade-mecum"  on  church 
order  and  officers,  and  take  our  last  look  at  earth's  great- 
est man  in  his  exodus,  through  martyrdom,   from  the 


10  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

battlefield   of   time   to   the   victor's   crown  of   glory   in 
eternity. 

As  the  storm  of  imperial  persecution  bursts  on  him, 
we  hear  him,  in  his  weakness,  call  for  Zenas,  the  lawyer, 
Luke,  the  physician,  and  Timothy,  his  son  in  the  gospel, 
his  cloak  to  warm  him  in  his  cold  cell,  his  books  and 
parchments  to  cheer  him ;  then  we  hear  him  in  his 
strength,  shout  his  battle-cry  of  triumph  for  himself  and 
every  other  saint:  "For  I  am  already  being  oflfered,  and 
the  time  of  my  departure  is  come.  I  have  fought  the 
good  fight,  I  have  finished  the  course,  I  have  kept  the 
faith:  henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me  the  crown  of 
righteousness,  which  the  Lord,  the  righteous  judge,  shall 
give  to  me  at  that  day ;  and  not  to  me  only,  but  also  to 
all  them  that  have  loved  his  appearing." 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  is  the  last  group  of  Paul's  letters  and  why  called 
"Pastoral  Epistles"? 

2.  How  does  the  Anglican  Church  misinterpret  Timothy  and 
Titus  ? 

3.  What  other  Evangelists  mentioned  in  these  letters? 

4.  Where  do  you  find  an  elaborate  discussion  of  the  office 
of  Evangelist? 

5.  Give  brief  account  of  the  office  as  distinguished  from 
others. 

6.  What  can  you  say  of  the  authenticity  of  these  letters? 

7.  Their  probable  dates? 

8.  Give  briefly  the  proof  that  Paul  was  acquitted  and  released 
from  the  first  Roman  imprisonment. 

9.  What  old  fields  did  he  revisit? 

10.  Give  probable  order  of  the  itinerary  of  this  last  tour. 

11.  Who  his  companions  on  this  tour  for  the  whole  or  part 
of  the  tour? 

12.  What  the  origin  of  the  Neronian  persecution  which  led 
to   Paul's   arrest,   second  imprisonment  and  martyrdom? 

13.  What  the  different  conditions  this  time  at  Rome? 

14.  Give  connected  Biblical  history  of  Timothy. 

15.  What  the  value  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles  and  what  the 
contrast  of  the  great  topics  of  this  group  of  Paul's  letters  with 
those  of  preceding  ones? 


II 

ANALYSIS— PULPIT  THEMES— EXPOSITION 

/  Timothy  iii-iy 

Analysis 
Chapter  One: 

1.  The  Salutation,  i :  i,  2. 

2.  Timothy  reminded  that  he  was  left  at  Ephesus  to 
correct  certain  errorists,  1:3,4. 

3.  These  errorists,  assuming  to  be  teachers  of  the  Law 
while  ignorant  of  its  end  and  application,  were  so  teach- 
ing as  to  subvert  both  Law  and  Gospel,  i  :5-ii. 

4.  Paul's  own  case  an  illustration  of  Gospel-grace  and 
power,  1 :  12-17. 

5.  Consequent  charge  to  Timothy,  i :  18-19. 

6.  The  case  of  Hymenseus  and  Alexander,  making 
shipwreck  concerning  the  faith,  illustrate  the  evil  of  turn- 
ing away  from  the  gospel,  i :  19-20. 

Chapter  Two: 

7.  Directions  for  Public  Prayer- Worship,  distinguish- 
ing between  the  spheres  of  men  and  women. 

Chapter  Three: 

8.  Directions  concerning  church  officers  and  their  quali- 
fications, 3 : 1-12. 

9.  Reasons  for  Paul's  writing,  3: 14-15. 

11 


12  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

10.  The  church  and  its  mission  concerning  the  truth, 

3:15- 

11.  The  elements  of  truth  concerning  the  mystery  of 
Godliness,  3:16. 

Chapter  Four: 

12.  The  Spirit's  prophecy  concerning  heretics  in  later 
times,  4: 1-5. 

13.  What  constitutes  a  good  minister  of  Jesus  Christ : 

( 1 )  As  touching  heresy,  4 : 6. 

(2)  As  touching  himself,  in  example,  4:6-12. 

(3)  As  touching  himself,  in  consecration  to  study, 
exhortation,  and  teaching,  4:13-16. 

Chapter  Five: 

14.  How  to  administer  internal  church  afifairs: 

(i)  In    relation    to    old    men,    young    men,    and 

widows,  5 : 1-16. 
(2)  And  to  preachers,  5  :  17-25. 

15.  What  to  teach  on  social  problems,  6:  i-io. 

16.  Solemn  charge  to  Timothy: 

(i)  Concerning  his  own  life,  6:11-16. 

(2)  Concerning  the  rich,  6:  17-19. 

(3)  Concerning  the  deposit  of  faith  committed  to 
his  trust,  6:20-21. 

(4)  Benediction,  6:21. 

Great  Pulpit  Themes  of  This  Letter 

1 :  5 — The  end  of  the  commandment. 

1 :  5 — (With  I  Cor.  13:13  and  II  Peter  i :  5-7  The  Chris- 
tian Pyramids.) 

I :  II — The  gospel  of  the  glory  of  the  happy  God. 

1 :  12 — Christ  puts  men  into  the  ministry  and  enables 
them. 

1 :  13 — From  blasphemer  to  preacher.  '^s 


ANALYSIS  13 

1 :  13,  16 — The  two  poles  of  Salvation: 
(i)  Who  are  salvable,  i :  13. 
(2)  The  salvation  of  the  outside  man  among 
the  salvable,  i :  16. 

I ;  15 — Wherein  Paul  v^^as  the  chief  of  sinners. 

1:15;  3:1;  4:9  with  Titus  3  : 8  and  II  Tim.  2  :  1 1-13 — 
The  five  faithful  sayings  of  the  Pastoral 
Epistles. 

2 : 4 — God's  desire  for  the  salvation  of  all  men. 

2:8-15 — The  distinct  spheres  of  men  and  women  in 
public  worship. 

3 :  I — The  pastorate  a  good  work. 

3  : 6,  10,  with  5  :  22 — The  proving  of  preachers  and  dea- 
cons before  ordination. 

3  : 6 — The  cause  of  the  Devil's  condemnation. 

3 : 7 — The  testimony  of  outsiders  concerning  fitness  for 
the  ministry. 

3:11  with  Rom.  16:  i — The  Deaconess  of  the  New  Tes- 
tament church. 

3 :  13 — What  a  faithful  deacon  gains. 

3: 15 — How  the  church  is  the  pillar  and  ground  of  the 
truth. 

3 :  16 — The  mystery  of  Godliness  and  the  elements  of  its 
truth. 

4 : 1 — The  great  apostasy  of  post-apostolic  days : 

(i)  The  cause,  seducing  spirits,  or  demons,  and 
the  doctrines  taught  by  them,  4:1. 

(2)  Their  human  agents,  lying  hypocrites  with 
seared  consciences,  4 : 2. 

(3)  What  the  demon  doctrines,  4:  3. 
4 : 6 — Who  a  good  minister  of  Jesus  Christ. 

4:8 — The  promise  of  Godliness  in  this  life  and  the  next. 
4 :  10 — God,  the  savior  of  all  men,  especially  of  them  that 
believe. 


14f  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

4 :  12-14 — The  preacher  as  an  example — his  reading,  ex- 
hortation, teaching,  and  the  gift  that  is  in  him. 

4 :  14 — The  laying  on  of  the  hands  of  the  presbytery. 

4: 16 — How  the  preacher  saves  himself  and  his  hearers. 

5  :  5 — "A  widow  indeed." 

5 : 6— She  that  liveth  in  pleasure  is  dead  while  she  liveth, 
and  "Little  Women"  (Greek:  gunaikaria,  H 
Tim.  3:6). 

5 : 8 — He  that  provideth  not  for  his  own  hath  denied  the 
faith  and  is  worse  than  an  infidel. 

5 :  10 — The  "washing  of  feet"  a  good  work,  not  a  church 
ordinance;  Christ's  washing  of  the  feet  of  the 
disciples  as  a  preparation  for  the  Old  Testament 
Passover,  and  not  connected  with  the  New  Tes- 
tament Lord's  Supper. 

5:21 — The  elect  angels. 

5 :  24 — Sins  that  go  before  and  sins  that  follow  after. 

6 : 9 — They  that  are  minded  to  be  rich. 

6:  II — The  love  of  money  a  root  of  all  evil. 

6:  17-19 — Charge  to  the  rich. 

6:20 — The  deposit  of  faith. 

Exposition:  i  :  1-17 

I  have  called  the  Pastoral  Epistles  the  preacher's  "vade 
mecum,"  i.  e.,  traveling  companion,  because  of  their  in- 
calculable importance.  They  contain  the  Bible's  best 
teaching  on  church  polity  and  order  and  constitute  a 
richer  mine  for  sermon  texts  than  can  be  found  elsewhere 
in  the  same  space  of  Biblical  literature.  The  author  has 
preached,  in  his  long  pastorate  at  Waco,  more  than  an 
equal  number  of  sermons  from  the  thirty-six  texts  cited 
above  from  only  one  of  these  letters,  and  an  almost  equal 
proportion  from  Titus  and  H  Timothy. 

I  cannot  now  refrain  from  calling  your  attention  to 


ANALYSIS  16 

Paul's  new  phrase:  "Faithful  is  the  saying."  Its  use 
five  times  in  these  Pastoral  Epistles  makes  it  proverbial 
— let  us  now  look  at  them : 

1.  1:5:  "Faithful  is  the  saying,  and  worthy  of  all 
acceptation,  that  Christ  Jesus  came  into  the  world  to 
save  sinners." 

2.  3:1:  "Faithful  is  the  saying,  if  a  man  seeketh  the 
office  of  a  bishop,  he  desireth  a  good  work."  It  is  some- 
times alleged  that  New  Testament  churches  had  no  defi- 
nite organization.  But  it  was  already  a  current  proverb 
concerning  this  ruling  officer  of  the  church. 

3.  4 : 8-9  or  9,  10 :  "Faithful  is  the  saying,  and  worthy 
of  all  acceptation."  Here  it  is  somewhat  difficult  to  de- 
termine whether  verse  8  or  10  expresses  the  proverb,  so 
we  give  both  (verse  8)  :  "Godliness  is  profitable  for  all 
things,  having  promise  of  the  life  which  now  is  and  of 
that  which  is  to  come."  (Verse  10)  :  "The  living  God 
is  the  Savior  of  all  men,  especially  of  them  that  beheve." 
The  context  favors  verse  8. 

4.  Titus  3:5:  "Faithful  is  the  saying  *  *  *  that 
they  who  have  believed  God  may  be  careful  to  maintain 
good  works."  Attention  is  specially  called  to  this,  be- 
cause some  seem  to  desire  to  stop  at  believing.  Not  only 
was  this  a  current  proverb,  but  Titus  is  exhorted  to 
affirm  it  constantly.  Paul's  doctrine  of  justification  never 
rested  on  a  barren  faith. 

5.  II  Tim.  2: 11-13.    This  one  is  fourfold : 
"Faithful  is  the  saying: 

(i)   If  we  died  with  Him,  we  shall  also  live  with 
Him ; 

(2)  If  we  endure,  we  shall  reign  with  Him; 

(3)  If  we  shall  deny  Him,  He  also  will  deny  us; 

(4)  If  we  are  faithless,  He  abideth  faithful,  for  He 
cannot  deny  Himself." 


16  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

These  sayings  may  be  treated  briefly  in  one  sermon, 
or  more  particularly  in  eight  sermons.  The  author  has 
done  both. 

The  Greek  student  will  find  in  the  Pastoral  Epistles 
quite  an  increase  of  new  words  in  Paul's  vocabulary.  But 
special  words  in  each  group  of  letters  is  characteristic 
of  Paul's  adaptation  of  new  terms  to  new  lines  of  thought. 

The  Salutation 

We  need  to  note  only  these  points: 

1.  God,  the  Father,  is  called  "Savior,"  which  is  new 
for  Paul,  but  repeated  in  Titus  1:3.  In  both  cases  he 
attributes  his  office  to  the  command  of  the  Father.  Mary, 
in  her  magnificat,  had  already  used  the  phrase. 

2.  Christ  is  called  "our  hope."  Paul  generally  puts 
Christ  as  the  object  of  faith,  but  in  Colossians  he  had 
already  said,  "Christ  in  you  the  hope  of  glory."  In  all 
his  later  letters  he  is  turning  to  the  future,  the  realm  of 
hope. 

3.  Timothy  is  called  his  "true  child  in  the  faith," 
meaning  that  Timothy  was  converted  under  his  ministry, 
as  was  Titus  also  (Titus  1:4).  So  in  Philemon  he  says 
the  same  of  Onesimus  :  "My  child  begotten  in  my  bonds." 
I  suggest  to  preachers  the  preparation  of  a  sermon  clearly 
distinguishing  the  several  thoughts  in  these  expressions: 

(i)   Christ  our  righteousness. 

(2)  Christ  our  hope. 

(3)  Christ  our  wisdom. 

(4)  Christ  our  sanctification. 

(5)  Christ  our  redemption. 

(6)  Christ  our  life. 

On  this  last,  Angus  wrote  his  prize  volume,  "Christ 
Our  Life,"  for  translation  into  heathen  languages. 


ANALYSIS  17 

Clearness  of  thought  in  the  general  departments  of  our 
Lord's  work  will  greatly  confirm  our  faith,  and  as  special 
reading  in  preparing  such  a  sermon,  I  commend  two  old- 
time  Puritan  books :  Owen  on  "Justification"  and  Flavel 
on  "The  Methods  of  Grace." 

Now  let  us  take  up  Timothy  and  the  errorists  at 
Ephesus,  1 :  3-1 1.  Here  we  come  upon  a  new  word  which 
became,  and  is,  world-famous:  Greek,  "hetero-didaska- 
lein."  Certain  ones  are  commanded  not  to  teach  hetero- 
doxy. There  we  have  it :  Orthodoxy  versus  Heterodoxy. 
It  is  quite  popular  in  certain  liberal  (meaning  loose) 
circles  to  sneer  at  one's  insistence  on  orthodoxy  and  to 
denounce  him  as  being  a  "heresy  hunter."  Paul  had  no 
such  spirit,  but  holding  heresy  as  a  deadly  evil,  hit  it 
hard  and  hit  it  to  kill  as  he  would  any  other  venomous 
snake. 

It  is  easy  to  say :  "Orthodoxy  is  my  doxy  and  hetero- 
doxy is  your  doxy,"  but  there  is  no  argument  in  the 
catch  phrase. 

Orthodoxy  is  conformity  to  New  Testament  teaching. 

Heterodoxy  is  departure  from  New  Testament  teaching. 

Paul  was  ready  to  write  "anathema"  in  letters  of  fire 
on  the  brow  of  even  an  angel  from  heaven  who  preached 
a  different  gospel  from  the  one  delivered  by  our  Lord. 
It  is  to  teach  instead,  as  these  Ephesian  heretics  did, 
"the  doctrines  of  demons."  And  we  are  partakers  of 
their  sins  if  we  fellowship  with  them,  or  bid  them  God- 
speed. 

What  the  heterodox  teaching  here  denounced?  As- 
suming to  be  teachers  of  the  Law,  while  ignorant  of 
both  its  scope  and  application,  they  so  taught  as  to  sub- 
vert both  Law  and  Gospel.  Leaving  out  the  saving  dis- 
pensation of  God  in  faith,  they  confined  their  teaching  to 
myths  and  endless  genealogies  which  ministered  gues- 


18      THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

tionings  and  disputes  about  matters  either  insoluble  or 
of  no  value  when  solved.  Later  these  fables  grew  into 
the  Talmud,  .which  may  be  likened  to  "a.  continent  of 
mud,"  or,  on  account  of  the  dryness  of  the  matter,  to 
the  Sahara  desert  minus  its  oases.  It  is  as  unpalatable 
as  saw-dust  bread.  Its  diet  is  as  void  of  nutritive  prop- 
erties as  the  sick  soldier's  soup,  according  to  his  own 
hyperbolic  description:  "A  piece  of  blue  beef  held  up 
between  the  sun  and  a  pot  of  boiling  water,  so  as  to  boil 
its  shadoiv." 

The  Old  Testament  genealogies  had  an  intelligent  pur- 
pose till  Christ  came,  for  they  located  Him.  After  that 
they  were  of  no  value,  and  when  they  were  arbitrarily 
spiritualized  they  became  vicious. 

In  a  political  race  in  McLennan  County  one  of  the 
candidates  devoted  an  hour  to  tracing  his  honorable  de- 
scent from  illustrious  families.  The  other  won  the  race 
by  a  reply  in  one  sentence :  "I  would  rather  be  a  horse 
without  a  pedigree  than  a  pedigree  without  a  horse." 

So  Paul,  in  one  great  sentence,  disposes  of  the  Law : 
"Now  the  end  of  the  commandment  is  LOVE,  out  of  a 
pure  heart,  out  of  a  good  conscience,  out  of  faith  un- 
feigned."   Mark  well  the  order : 

(i)  Unfeigned  faith  in  our  Lord,  leading  to 

(2)  A  good  conscience,  leading  to 

(3)  A  pure  heart,  culminating  in 

(4)  Love. 

Not  some  sentimental  gush  miscalled  love,  but  love  bot- 
tomed on  faith  and  emerging  from  a  good  conscience, 
cleansed  by  the  blood  of  Christ,  and  from  a  purified  heart. 
This  brings  us  not  to  the  hollow  Egyptian  Pyramids, 
but  to 

The  Christian  Pyramids.  Let  us  mentally  construct 
them  so  we  can  diagram  them  on  paper :     Take  these 


ANALYSIS  19 

passages:  I  Cor.  13:13;  I  Tim.  1:5;  II  Peter  1:5-7, 
and  construct  three  pyramids,  arising  in  ever-narrowing 
terraces,  always  with  faith  the  foundation  and  love  the 
capstone : 

I.  Faith — Hope — Love. 

2.  Faith  unfeigned — A  good  conscience — 
A  pure  heart — Love. 

3.   Faith — Courage — Knowledge — Self-control — Patience 
Godliness — Brotherly  Kindness — Love. 

These  heterodox  teachers  never  understood  this  su- 
preme end  of  the  Law.  Moses  himself  had  compressed 
his  Ten  Commandments  into  two — Love  God  supremely 
and  your  neighbor  as  yourself,  and  our  Lord,  quoting 
him,  said,  "On  these  two  hang  all  the  Law  and  the 
prophets.  Paul  compressed  them  into  one :  "Love  is  the 
fulfilling  of  the  Law."  He  would  have  them  understand 
that  the  Law  was  not  a  way  of  life,  but  to  discover  sin — 
making  sin  appear  to  be  sin  and  exceedingly  sinful.  Then 
he  adds :  "But  we  know  that  the  Law  is  good,  if  a  man 
use  it  lawfully,  as  knowing  this  that  the  law  is  not  made 
for  a  righteous  man,  but  for  the  lawless  and  unruly,  for 
the  ungodly  and  sinners,  for  the  unholy  and  profane,  for 
murderers  of  fathers  and  murderers  of  mothers,  for  man- 
slayers,  for  fornicators,  for  abusers  of  themselves  with 
men,  for  menstealers,  for  liars,  for  false  swearers,  and 
if  there  be  any  other  thing  contrary  to  the  sound 
doctrine." 

And  over  against  this  he  solemnly  declares  that  what 
is  "sound  doctrine"  must  be  "according  to  the  gospel  of 
the  glory  of  the  happy  God,"  which  was  committed  to 
his  trust.  All  doctrine  contrary  to  that  gospel  is  un- 
sound, whether  preached  by  demon  or  man.    Paul's  sound 


20  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

doctrine  here  accords  with  his  sound  doctrine  in  Titus 
2:1.  We  hear  much  of  sound  doctrine,  but  let  us  not 
make  a  mistake.  It  is  not  the  doctrine  of  grace  theoret- 
ically held,  resting  on  a  barren  faith,  but  on  a  faith 
which  works  by  love,  purifies  the  heart  and  makes  the 
man  a  better  man  in  all  the  relations  of  life — parent, 
child,  brother,  husband,  neighbor,  and  citizen. 

On  my  first  visit  to  St.  Louis,  Dr.  Pope  Yeaman  asked 
me:  "Are  Texas  Baptists  sound?"  I  replied:  "Some  of 
them  are  nothing  but  sound :  Vox  et  preterea  nihil." 

Before  the  Southern  Baptist  Convention  I  preached  on 
this  passage,  I  Tim.  i :  11 :  "The  gospel  of  the  glory  of 
the  happy  God,"  rendering  the  Greek  word,  "Makariou" 
by  "happy"  instead  of  "blessed,"  because  this  is  not  the 
usual  word  for  "blessed"  and  because  "happy"  expresses 
the  precise  thought.  The  success  of  the  gospel  makes 
God  happy.  As  in  Luke  15,  it  is  the  shepherd  who 
rejoices  when  he  finds  the  lost  sheep ;  and  it  is  the  woman 
who  rejoices  when  she  finds  the  lost  coin ;  and  it  is  the 
father  who  rejoices  when  he  recovers  his  lost  son.  And 
that  this  rendering  accorded  with  Christ's  being  anointed 
with  the  oil  of  gladness,  and  of  His  being  satisfied  when 
He  saw  of  the  travail  of  His  soul. 

My  rendering  was  criticized  by  one  captious  hearer, 
but  I  was  gratified  to  find  afterwards  in  one  of  his  books 
that  Dr.  Harwood  Patterson  of  Rochester  Seminary  gave 
the  same  rendering  and  for  similar  reasons. 

There  are  two  kinds  of  heretics,  both  abominable  to 
God  for  their  "unsound  doctrine."  The  one  who  claims 
the  power  of  Godliness  and  decries  its  form ;  the  other 
who  magnifies  the  form  and  despises  the  power.  In  one 
community  I  found  striking  examples  of  both  kinds. 
One  of  them  was  ever  saying,  "I  care  nothing  for  your 
dogmas  and  ordinances  and  churches  and  preachers.     I 


ANALYSIS  21 

go  in  for  keeping  the  heart  all  right,  and  stand  for  good 
morals."  The  other  was  the  most  contentious,  disputa- 
tious man  I  ever  knew.  As  a  good  old  deacon  described 
him :  "He  pulled  all  the  buttons  off  your  coat  trying  to 
hold  you  while  he  set  forth  his  infallible  propositions, 
and  developed  corns  on  his  fingers  in  repeating  his 
points."  All  his  followers  carried  chips  on  their  shoul- 
ders, and  like  a  wild  Irishman  at  a  fair,  were  daring 
people  to  step  on  their  coat-tails. 

One  of  the  converts  of  such  (an  old  negro,  as  I  have 
heard),  as  soon  as  he  rose  from  his  baptism,  spat  the 
water  out  of  his  mouth,  and  said,  "Now  I's  ready  fur  a 
'spute." 

The  first  was  blind  to  God's  methods  in  grace,  i.e., 
inveloping  the  life  germ  in  a  form  for  its  protection  until 
maturity.  I  asked  him  once  what  would  become  of  the 
corn  and  wheat  and  nuts  if  they  attempted  to  mature 
without  the  protecting  forms  of  husks  and  chaff  and 
shells,  and  showed  him  a  nubbin  that  grew  on  the  top 
of  a  corn-stalk  where  the  tassel  ought  to  be.  It  had 
no  shuck  to  protect  it,  no  tassel  to  fertilize  it,  no  silk  to 
catch  the  shedding  from  the  tassel.  Birds  had  pecked 
it,  worms  had  bitten  it,  "smut"  had  discolored  it  and 
infested  it,  cold  had  smitten  it,  heat  had  scorched  it  until 
there  was  not  a  sound  grain  on  it.  Not  even  a  hog 
would  eat  it. 

My  young  readers,  let  no  "broad-gauged"  fool  beguile 
you  into  despising  forms  and  ordinances  established  by 
the  wisdom  of  our  Lord,  and  follow  no  brass  band  and 
tinkling  cymbal  crowd  in  resting  on  a  barren  faith  and 
wordy  orthodoxy. 

Paul's  case  an  illustration  of  gospel  power.  The  para- 
graph, 1 :  12-17,  is  one  of  the  deepest,  broadest,  richest, 
and  sweetest  in  the  Holy  Scriptures.     It  has  as  many 


22  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

sermons  in  it  as  there  are  eggs  in  a  guinea's  nest — and  I 
once  found  a  guinea's  nest  with  sixty  eggs  in  it. 

The  first  thought  that  rushes  into  my  own  mind  as  [ 
read  it  is :  What  a  wonderful  use  Paul  makes  of  his  own 
Christian  experience.  Eight  times,  at  least,  it  is  used, 
and  each  time  for  a  different  purpose.  Once  Luke  tells 
it  (Acts  9: 1-18)  ;  once  Barnabas  tells  it  (Acts  9:26-27), 
six  times  Paul  tells  it  himself  (Acts  22:1-16;  Acts  26: 
1-18;  Rom.  7:9-25;  Phil.  3:4-14;  I  Tim.  1:12-17;  II 
Tim.  I : 12). 

I  am  reminded  of  the  fighting  Methodist  preacher's 
advice,  as  given  in  one  of  Edward  Eggleston's  romances. 
On  the  way  to  an  appointment  two  wicked  men  met  him 
and  told  him  he  must  go  back  or  take  a  whipping.  He 
concluded  to  do  neither,  but  got  down  off  his  horse  and 
whipped  both  of  them  till  they  "hollered,"  prayed  for 
them,  and  then  made  them  go  with  him  to  church !  But 
when  he  got  there  his  own  bruised  jaw  was  so  swollen 
he  couldn't  preach.  Whereupon  he  peremptorily  ordered 
a  young  convert  to  get  up  and  preach.  The  timid  boy 
protested  that  he  had  no  sermon  and  did  not  know  how 
to  make  one.  "Get  up  at  once  and  preach,"  said  the  stern 
circuit  rider,  "and  if  you  can't  preach,  TELL  YOUR 
CHRISTIAN  EXPERIENCE."  The  boy  obeyed.  His 
heart  was  overflowing  with  gratitude  to  his  Lord  for 
saving  him,  a  wicked,  ignorant,  country  lad.  He  at- 
tempted no  sermon,  scraped  down  no  star-dust  of  rhet- 
oric, indulged  in  no  sophomore  flights  of  fancy,  shot  off 
no  glittering  fire-works,  scattered  no  bouquets  of  com- 
pliments, but  went  right  on  in  sobs  and  tears  and  re- 
joicings to  tell  how  he  was  convicted  of  sin,  how  the 
Lord  graciously  met  him,  how  God,  for  Christ's  sake, 
pardoned  his  many  sins,  how  gloriously  happy  he  was, 
how  Jesus  was  ready  to  welcome  any  other  poor  country 


ANALYSIS  23 

boy,  and  how  the  one  desire  of  his  soul  was  to  lead 
others  to  Christ,  and  there  he  stood,  himself  a  monument 
of  grace,  and  exhorted  till 

"Heaven  came  down  their  souls  to  greet. 
And  glory  crowned  the  mercy  seat" — 

And  the  woods  were  afire  like  the  burning  bush.  That 
broken-jawed  circuit-rider  hugged  him  on  the  spot  and 
told  him  it  was  the  greatest  sermon  he  ever  heard,  in- 
stantly called  for  his  ordination,  and  put  him  at  once  into 
a  life-saving  work  that  ended  only  when  his  voice  was 
hushed  in  death. 

If  a  man  has  a  genuine  experience,  and  keeps  right 
on  experiencing  new  manifestations  of  grace,  it  is  a  big 
part  of  his  preaching  stock.  In  our  next  chapter  this 
glorious  paragraph  of  Paul's  experience  will  be  unfolded 
and  illustrated, 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  the  analysis  of  I  Timothy? 

2.  What  its  great  pulpit  themes? 

3.  Why  the  Pastoral  Epistles  the  preacher's  Vade-Mecum 
and  what  do  they  contain? 

4.  What  new  phrase  in  these  epistles? 

5.  Give  in  order  the  five  "Faithful  Sayings." 

6.  Why  does   Paul  use  new  terms  in  each  group  of  letters? 

7.  What  three  points  of  note  in  the  Salutation? 

8.  The  preparation  of  what  sermon  was  suggested,  and  why, 
and  what  old  books  commended  for  help  in  the  preparation? 

9.  What  new  term  in  1:3? 

10.  Give  both  a  false  and  a  true  statement  of  heterodoxy  and 
orthodoxy. 

11.  Wherein  do  many  moderns  differ  from  Paul  on  hetero- 
doxy ? 

12.  What  the  heterodox  teaching  here  condemned? 

13.  In  what  Jewish  book  are  most  these  legends  contained 
and  how  would  you  illustrate  its  value? 

14.  What  the  original  purpose  of  the  Biblical  genealogies 
and  when  did  they  become  valueless? 


g4  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

15.  Illustrate  their  present  worthlessness  by  a  certain  political 
race. 

16.  How  does  Paul  in  one  sentence  dispose  of  the  law? 

17.  Using  I  Cor.  13:13;  I  Tim.  1:5;  II  Pet.  1:5-7  construct 
a  diagram  of  three  Christian  pyramids,  the  foundation  in  each 
being   "Faith"   and  the   capstone   "Love." 

18.  How  did  Moses  himself  condense  his  Ten  Command- 
ments and  what  our  Lord's  comment  thereon?  How  does  Paul 
condense  them  even  more? 

19.  Instead  of  being  a  way  of  life  for  the  righteous  what 
classes   was   it   designed   to    restrain   and    convict? 

20.  According  to  what  is  all  "sound  doctrine?"    Illustrate? 

21.  What  the  defense  of  the  rendering  "happy"  instead  of 
"blessed"  in  I   Tim.    i:ii? 

22.  What  the  two  kinds  of  heretics? 

23.  How  many  times  and  where  in  N.  T.  is  use  made  of 
Paul's   Christian  experience? 

24.  Cite  Edward  Eggleston's  instance  of  the  value  of  one's 
Christian  experience  as  a  pulpit  theme. 


Ill 

PAUL'S  CHRISTIAN   EXPERIENCE 

Scripture:  I  Tim.  i:i8 — 2:7 

AT  the  close  of  the  last  chapter  we  were  considering 
Paul's  use  of  his  Christian  experience,  and  eight 
instances  of  its  use  were  cited.  In  that  connection 
a  promise  was  made  to  begin  this  chapter  with  a  bit  of 
history  illustrating  the  last  two  instances  of  its  use, 
namely,  I  Tim.  i :  12-13  ^"d  II  Tim.  i :  12.  The  history 
is  this : 

The  Southern  Baptist  Convention  held  its  first  Texas 
session  at  Jefferson.  On  Sunday  two  remarkable  ser- 
mons were  preached.  Rev.  W.  W.  Landrum,  a  licensed 
preacher,  was  pastor-elect  of  the  First  Church,  Shreve- 
port.  La.  The  Church  called  for  his  ordination  to  take 
place  Sunday  at  11  :oo  a.  m.  at  Jefferson  during  the  Con- 
vention session  there,  in  order  that  Dr.  Broadus  and  Dr. 
S.  Landrum,  the  father  of  the  candidate,  might  serve  on 
the  presbytery.  The  Convention,  of  course,  did  not 
ordain  him,  but  some  thought  it  would  have  a  misleading 
effect  to  have  the  ordination  away  from  the  home  church 
and  at  an  important  Convention  hour.  Dr.  Broadus 
preached  the  ordination  sermon  from  the  common  ver- 
sion of  I  Tim.  1 :  12-13,  the  very  passage  we  are  now 
considering.     It  was  a  great  ^nd  very  impressive  sermon. 

From  memory  I  give  you  his  outline : 

I.  Christ  puts  men  into  the  ministry:  "Putting  me  into 
this  ministry," 

25 


26  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

2.  Christ  confers  ability  on  his  ministers :  "Enabling 
me." 

3.  This  should  be  a  matter  of  thankfulness  to  the  min- 
ister: "I  thank  Christ  Jesus  my  Lord." 

4.  Especially  when  the  preacher  was  formerly  Christ's 
enemy:  "Putting  me  into  this  ministry  who  was  before 
a  blasphemer,  persecuter  and  injurious." 

Sunday  night  the  Convention  sermon  was  preached  by 
Dr.  Taylor,  newly-elect  pastor  of  the  Colosseum  Place 
Church,  New  Orleans.  His  text  was  another  relating  of 
Paul's  experience:  H  Tim.  1:12:  "For  which  cause  I 
suffer  all  these  things ;  yet  I  am  not  ashamed;  for  I  know 
Him  whom  I  have  believed;  and  I  am  persuaded  that  He 
is  able  to  guard  that  which  I  have  committed  unto  Him 
against  that  day." 

I  have  italicized  the  words  stressed  in  the  sermon. 
Again  from  memory  I  give  the  outline : 

1.  Paul  called  to  be  a  great  sufferer:  "I  suffer  all 
these  things,"  citing  in  illustration  Acts  9:16;!  Cor.  4:9; 
H  Cor.  4:10-11;  6:4-5;  11:23-29.  This  point  was 
exceedingly  pathetic. 

2.  The  cause  of  his  willingness  to  suffer:  "For  this 
cause  I  suffer" ;  he  found  in  the  preceding  verse :  "Our 
Savior,  Jesus  Christ,  hath  abolished  death,  and  brought 
life  and  immortality  to  light  through  the  gospel." 

3.  Called  to  suffering  but  not  to  shame:  "Yet  I  am  not 
ashamed." 

4.  Reasons  for  not  being  ashamed : 

(i)  "I  knozv  Him  whom  I  have  believed."  Here 
the  preacher,  evincing  great  classical  re- 
search, contrasted  the  vague  guesses  of  the 
wisest  heathen  in  their  philosophies,  with 
the  certitude  of  Christian  knowledge. 

(2)  "Whom  I  have  believed."    Here,  with  great 


PAUL'S  CHRISTIAN  EXPERIENCE        2T 

power,  the  preacher  showed  that  the  object 
of  faith  was  a  person  and  not  a  proposition, 
contrasting  the  difference  between  a  bur- 
dened sinner  resting  his  weary  head  on  a 
sympathetic  heart,  and  resting  it  on  the 
cold  marble  of  an  abstract  proposition. 

(3)  "I  know  Whom  I  have  believed. "     Here  he 

made  plain  that  faith  is  not  blind  credulity, 
but  based  on  assured  knowledge  and  there- 
fore reasonable. 

(4)  "And  I  am  persuaded  that  He  is  able  to  guard, 

etc."    Here  the  assurance  of  faith. 

(5)  "To  guard  that  which  I  have  committed  unto 

Him."  Here  faith,  having  believed  a  well- 
known  person,  commits  a  treasure  to  his 
keeping,  being  assured  of  his  ability  to 
guard  it.  The  thought  was  clear  and  im- 
pressive that  faith  is  not  only  believing,  but 
a  committal — the  making  of  deposit — even 
one's  own  assaulted  body  and  soul — the  life 
of  the  man  himself — to  be  hid  with  Christ 
in  God. 

(6)  "Against  that  day."    The  great  judgment  day 

— not  only  guarded  in  all  of  life's  trials, 
sorrows,    and    sufferings,    and    in    death's 
dread  hour,  but  even  in  the  last  great  assize, 
where  before  the  great  white  throne  final 
assignment  is  made  to  one's  eternal  state, 
home,  and  companionship. 
The  two  sermons  were  much  discussed  as  to  their  rela- 
tive greatness.    The  general  verdict  was  that  Dr.  Broadus' 
was  the  greater  to  the  hearer,  and  Dr.  Taylor's  was  the 
greater  to  the  reader,  the  one  being  much  more  impressive 
in  delivery  than  the  other. 


28  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

I  have  given  this  bit  of  history  not  only  to  illustrate 
the  force  of  the  closing  point  in  my  last  discussion  on 
the  uses  made  of  Paul's  Christian  experience,  but  because 
the  sermons  were  master-pieces  of  homiletics. 

In  resuming  the  exposition  of  our  great  paragraph, 
attention  is  called  to  two  distinct  reasons  assigned  for 
Paul's  conversion,  which  constitute 

The  Two  Poles  of  Salvation.  The  first  reason  assigned 
— latter  clause  of  verse  13 :  "Howbeit  I  obtained  mercy 
because  I  did  it  ignorantly  in  unbelief."  A  blasphemer, 
a  persecuter,  an  injurious  man  may  obtain  mercy  if 
these  things  are  done  in  spiritual  ignorance  and  unbelief. 
This  answers  the  question :  "Who  are  salvable  ?"  to-wit : 
all  sinners  on  earth  who  have  not  committed  the  unpar- 
donable sin — eternal  sin — pardonable  because  not  wil- 
fully against  the  light,  knowledge,  and  conviction  of  the 
Holy  Spirit.  Let  the  reader  consult  the  teacher's  expo- 
sition of  Heb.  10:26-31,  and  compare  Matthew  12:32, 
Mark  3 :  28-30,  and  I  John  5 :  16-18.  Paul  was  conscien- 
tious in  all  his  blasphemies  and  persecution.  He  verily 
thought  he  was  doing  God's  service.  Conscience  is  that 
inward  monitor,  divinely  implanted,  which  pronounces 
verdict  on  good  and  evil.  It  is  a  mistake  to  say  that  it  is 
the  creature  of  education.  Education  itself  being  only 
development  and  training  of  what  is  already  potentially 
present,  can  have  no  creative  power.  Conscience,  unen- 
lightened, may  become  the  servant  of  education  and  envi- 
ronment. Its  light  may  be  darkened ;  it  may  become  cal- 
lous and  even  seared  as  with  a  hot  iron,  but  it  never 
vacates  its  witness  box  or  judicial  seat  in  either  Christian, 
Jew,  or  heathen  (Rom.  2: 14-15  19:1;  Acts  26:9). 

The  second  reason  assigned  is  in  1:16:  "Howbeit  for 
this  cause  I  obtained  mercy,  that  in  me  as  chief  might 
Jesus  Christ  show  forth  all  His  longsufifering,  for  an 


PAUL'S  CHRISTIAN  EXPERIENCE        g9 

example  of  them  that  should  thereafter  believe  on  Him 
unto  eternal  life."  This  is  the  other  pole  of  salvation. 
The  chief  of  sinners,  the  outside  man  of  the  salvable,  was 
saved  to  show  the  utmost  extent  of  longsufifering  mercy 
as  an  example  of  encouragement  to  despairing  men  less 
guilty  than  the  chief,  to  believe  on  Christ  unto  eternal  life. 

Now,  the  use  that  we  make  of  that  last  reason  is  this : 
We  may  take  that  case  of  Paul  as  the  outside  man,  the 
chief  of  sinners,  and  holding  it  up  as  a  model,  as  an 
example,  go  to  any  sinner  this  side  of  hell — even  if  his 
feet  be  on  the  quivering,  crumbling  brink  of  the  abyss — 
and  preach  salvation  to  him,  and  if  he  despairs  and  says, 
*T  am  too  great  a  sinner,"  then  we  may  say,  "Behold,  God 
saves  the  outside  man,  nearer  to  hell  than  you  are." 

In  order  to  get  the  full  benefit  of  that  thought  we  must 
conceive  of  all  sinners  that  are  salvable  put  in  a  row, 
single  file,  and  graded  according  to  the  heinousness  of 
their  guilt — here  the  least  guilty,  there  the  next  most 
guilty,  and  the  next,  and  the  next,  and  away  yonder  at 
the  end  of  the  line  is  that  outside  man,  Paul,  right  next 
to  hell.  Now  Christ  comes  and  reaches  out  a  long  arm 
of  Grace  over  that  extended  line  and  snatches  the  outside 
man  from  the  very  jaws  of  hell,  and  holds  him  up  and 
says,  "Is  not  this  a  brand  plucked  from  the  burning?" 

I  have  used  that  example  just  the  way  God  intended 
it  to  be  used  in  preaching  in  jails  and  penitentiaries  and 
city  slums,  and  in  coming  in  contact  with  the  toughest 
and  roughest  and  most  criminal  sinners  in  the  world. 

The  next  question  is :  Wherein  is  Paul  the  chief  of 
sinners?  Quite  a  number  of  men  have  disputed  my  con- 
tention that  Paul  was  really  the  greatest  sinner,  leaving 
out  of  course  the  unpardonable  sin.  He  was  a  blas- 
phemer, but  that  did  not  make  him  the  chief  of  sinners, 
for  others  have  been  more  blasphemous.    He  was  a  per- 


30  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

secutor,  but  that  did  not  make  him  the  chief  of  sinners, 
for  other  men  have  been  greater  persecutors :  Nero,  Louis 
XIV  of  France,  and  especially  that  spiritual  monster, 
Philip  II  of  Spain,  Any  one  of  these  men  persecuted 
beyond  anything  that  Paul  ever  did.  He  was  an  injuri- 
ous man,  but  other  men  have  been  more  injurious  than 
he.  What,  then,  constituted  him  the  chief  of  sinners, 
the  outside  man?  My  answer  is:  He  was  a  Pharisee  of 
the  Pharisees  in  his  self -righteousness — the  extremest 
Pharisee  that  ever  lived — and  self-righteousness  stands 
more  opposed  to  the  righteousness  of  Christ  than  does 
either  persecution  or  blasphemy.  To  illustrate :  The 
Pharisee  who  came  into  the  temple  to  pray,  and  with 
uplifted  eyes,  faces  God  and  says,  "God,  I  thank  Thee 
that  I  am  not  like  other  men — especially  this  poor  pub- 
lican. I  fast  twice  every  week ;  I  pay  tithes  of  all  I 
possess."  No  praying  in  that.  It  is  the  feigned  prayer 
of  the  self-righteous  man,  denying  that  he  is  a  sinner. 
He  denies  any  need  of  regeneration  and  sanctification  by 
the  Holy  Spirit.  He  denies  any  need  of  the  cleansing 
by  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ :  "I  need  no  Savior ;  I  stand 
on  my  own  record,  and  answer  for  myself  at  the  bar  of 
God."  The  self-righteous  man  would  come  to  the  very 
portals  of  heaven  over  which  is  written :  "No  unclean 
thing  shall  enter  here,"  march  right  in  and  stand  un- 
abashed in  the  presence  of  the  Cherubim  who  sing, 
"Holy,  Holy,  Holy,  Lord  God  Almighty,"  and  brazenly 
say  to  God's  face :  "I  am  as  holy  as  Thou  art.  I  am  as 
white  as  snow.  I  was  never  in  bondage.  I  have  no  need 
to  be  forgiven."  That  made  Paul  the  chief  of  sinners ; 
nobody  ever  came  up  to  him  on  self -righteousness.  Now, 
if  this  chief  of  sinners,  this  outside  man,  be  saved,  that 
gives  us  the  other  Pole  of  Salvation. 

Proceeding  with  the  discussion,  we  note  what  the  17th 


PAUL'S  CHRISTIAN  EXPERIENCE        31 

verse  says :  "Now  unto  the  King  eternal,  immortal,  invis- 
ible, the  only  God,  be  honor  and  glory  forever  and  ever. 
Amen."  How  is  God  more  immortal,  more  eternal  than 
the  soul  of  man?  If  the  soul  of  man  is  deathless,  then 
how  is  He  more  immortal?  There  was  a  beginning  to 
that  soul,  but  there  was  no  beginning  to  the  being  of 
God.  How  is  God  invisible  ?  The  scriptures  declare  that 
no  man  hath  seen  God  at  any  time,  or  can  see  Him.  The 
only  way  in  which  He  has  ever  been  seen  has  been  in 
His  image,  Jesus  Christ.  Jesus  has  revealed  Him ;  so 
when  we  look  at  Jesus  we  see  the  Father,  and  in  the 
teachings  of  Jesus  we  hear  the  Father.  But  there  will 
come  a  time,  when  we  are  completely  saved,  when  the 
affairs  of  the  world  are  wound  up,  then  we  shall  see  God ; 
"God  Himself  shall  tabernacle  with  men,  and  they  shall 
see  His  face."  That  was  the  glorious  thought  in  Job's 
declaration :  "Oh,  that  my  words  were  now  written,  that 
they  were  graven  with  iron  and  lead  in  a  rock  forever, 
for  I  know  that  my  Redeemer  Hveth ;  and  though  after 
my  skin  worms  destroy  this  body,  yet  in  my  flesh  shall  I 
see  God,  whom  I  shall  see  for  myself,  and  mine  eyes 
shall  behold."  In  quoting  this  passage,  I  stand  upon  the 
King  James  version :  ''In  my  body" — not  "apart  from  my 
body."  We  do  not  see  God  in  our  disembodied  soul,  but 
when  our  soul  and  body  are  redeemed,  then  God  Himself 
becomes  visible.  The  context  and  all  the  scriptures  in 
other  connections  oppose  the  Revised  version  on  this  pas- 
sage.   See  Rev.  22 : 4. 

The  1 8th  verse  gives  a  consequential  charge  to  Tim- 
othy. It  reads :  "This  charge  I  commit  unto  thee,  my 
child  Timothy,  according  to  the  prophecies  which  led 
the  way  unto  thee,  that  by  them  thou  mayest  war  a  good 
warfare."  What  is  the  meaning  of  the  prophecy  that 
led  the  way  to  Timothy?    In  Acts  13  in  the  church  of 


32  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Antioch  there  were  certain  prophets,  and  it  was  revealed 
unto  these  prophets  that  Saul  and  Barnabas  should  be 
set  apart,  or  ordained,  to  the  foreign  mission  work. 
Later  Barnabas  drops  out,  and  Paul  needs  another  and 
better  Barnabas  and  some  prophet,  either  Paul  himself 
or  Silas,  receives  a  revelation  that  that  boy,  Timothy,  who 
was  led  to  Christ  in  Lystra  or  in  Derbe,  should  be  or- 
dained to  go  with  Paul  to  the  foreign  mission  work. 

The  second  part  of  the  charge  is,  "holding  faith  and  a 
good  conscience."  Do  not  turn  faith  loose ;  don't  say, 
"I  once  believed  in  Jesus  Christ,  now  I  do  not."  Hold 
on  to  a  good  conscience.  Conscience  is  never  good  until 
it  is  purified  with  the  application  of  the  blood  of  Jesus 
Christ  in  regeneration.  The  lamp  of  the  Lord  shines 
with  a  clear  light  upon  every  action,  right  or  wrong,  as 
long  as  it  remains  good.  But  when  we  begin  to  trifle 
with  the  conscience — when  we  do  things  we  are  con- 
scientiously opposed  to,  our  conscience  will  become  cal- 
lous. Therefore,  let  us  hold  to  our  faith,  and  hold  to  a 
good  conscience. 

In  the  next  verse:  "Which  some  having  thrust  from 
them  made  shipwreck  concerning  the  faith,  of  whom  is 
Hymenseus  and  Alexander,  whom  I  delivered  unto  Satan, 
that  they  might  be  taught  not  to  blaspheme."  Now  here 
we  have  a  shipwreck — not  OF  faith — ^but  concerning  the 
faith.  These  men  turned  loose  the  faith,  blinding  their 
consciences.  Now  the  question  comes  up :  On  what  spe- 
cific point  did  these  two  men  turn  loose  the  faith?  II 
Timothy,  second  chapter,  commencing  at  the  i6th  verse, 
answers :  "But  shun  profane  babblings,  for  they  will  pro- 
ceed further  in  ungodliness,  and  their  word  will  eat  as 
doth  a  gangrene  (or  cancer),  of  whom  is  Hymenseus 
and  Philetus  (here  we  get  one  of  them  with  another 
added)  ;  men  who  concerning  the  truth  have  erred,  saying 


PAUL'S  CHRISTIAN  EXPERIENCE        33 

that  the  resurrection  is  past  already,  and  overthrow  the 
faith  of  some."  Men  in  Ephesus  denied  that  there  was 
any  such  thing  as  the  resurrection  of  the  body — that  it 
was  scientifically  impossible — and  taught  that  the  resur- 
rection was  the  conversion  of  the  soul.  They  have  fol- 
lowers today.  Some  who  claim  to  be  teachers  of  preach- 
ers virtually  deny  the  resurrection  of  the  body.  A 
preacher  of  the  annual  sermon  before  the  Southern  Bap- 
tist Convention,  taught  that  Christ  assumed  His  resur- 
rection body  simply  for  identification,  and  that  after  He 
was  identified  it  was  eliminated,  and  it  did  not  concern 
us  to  know  what  became  of  it. 

Now,  what  does  Paul  say  about  the  denial  of  the 
resurrection?  He  calls  it  profane  babbling  that  will 
progress  to  greater  ungodliness :  "And  their  word  will  eat 
as  doth  a  gangrene."  We  know  how  a  cancer  eats  while 
we  are  sleeping,  commencing  perhaps  in  the  corner  of 
the  eye,  and  after  a  while  it  will  eat  the  eye  out,  then  the 
side  of  the  face,  then  it  will  eat  the  nose  off,  and  then  the 
lips,  and  keep  on  eating.  That  was  the  shipwreck  con- 
cerning the  faith  made  by  Hymenaeus,  Alexander,  and 
Philetus. 

The  next  question  is :  What  chance  did  Paul  give  these 
men  to  be  saved?  The  text  says  that  he  turned  them 
over  to  Satan  that  they  should  be  taught  not  to  blaspheme. 
In  other  words,  the  true  Christian  in  the  fold  is  hedged 
against  Satan — he  cannot  get  to  him — he  cannot  put  the 
weight  of  his  little  finger  on  him  without  asking  permis- 
sion ;  he  asked  permission  to  worry  Job  and  Peter. 
Whenever  a  sheep  on  the  inside  gets  too  unruly  and  he 
is  put  on  the  outside  and  hears  the  wolves  howl  a  while, 
he  will  bleat  around  to  come  back  in.  But  if  one  turns 
an  unruly  hog  out  of  the  pen,  he  will  strike  for  the  woods 
and  never  come  back.     Peter,  in  the  exercise   of  his 


34  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

apostolic  power,  could  strike  Ananias  dead.  Paul,  in  the 
same  power,  struck  Elymas  blind,  but  where  the  object 
of  this  power  is  to  save,  offenders  were  temporarily 
turned  over  to  the  buffeting  of  Satan  as  in  the  case  of  the 
offending  Corinthian.  This  man  had  taken  his  father's 
wife,  but  the  discipline  led  him  to  repentance  and  he 
was  glad  to  get  back  in. 

The  second  chapter  gives  direction  concerning  public 
prayer- worship.  The  first  injunction  is  that  prayers, 
supplications,  and  intercessions  be  made  for  all  men — 
not  only  for  our  Baptist  brethren,  but  our  Methodist 
brethren ;  not  only  for  the  Christians,  but  for  those  on 
the  outside.  Pray  for  all  rulers,  all  people  in  authority 
— presidents,  governors,  senators,  city  councils,  and  police 
— ah,  but  some  of  them  do  need  it!  Now,  he  gives  the 
reasons — it  is  important  to  see  what  the  reasons  are: 
(i)  Pray  for  these  rulers  that  we  may  live  a  quiet  and 
orderly  life.  If  they  are  bad,  we  won't  have  an  easy  time. 
If  the  administrators  of  law  be  themselves  lawless  in 
their  speech,  every  bad  man  construes  it  into  permission 
to  do  what  he  pleases.  When  the  wicked  are  in  power 
the  righteous  suffer.  (2)  It  is  good  and  acceptable  in 
the  sight  of  God  that  we  should  do  it.  God  wants  us  to 
pray  for  all  people.  And  the  third  reason  is  the  great 
reason :  That  God  would  have  all  men  to  be  saved.  Let 
us  not  squirm  at  that,  but  for  a  little  while  let  us  forget 
about  election  and  predestination,  and  just  look  this  scrip- 
ture squarely  in  the  face:  God  desires  the  salvation  of 
all  men.  In  this  connection  I  commend  that  sermon  in 
my  first  book  of  sermons  on  "God  and  the  Sinner." 
Note  in  order  its  several  proof-texts. 

God  asks,  Ezek.  18:  "Have  I  any  pleasure  at  all  in  the 
death  of  the  wicked  that  they  should  die  and  not  live?" 
Ezek.  33,  God  takes  an  oath :  "As  I  live  saith  the  Lord, 


PAUL'S  CHRISTIAN  EXPERIENCE        35 

I  have  no  pleasure  in  the  death  of  the  Tvicked,  but  rather 
that  he  will  turn  from  his  evil  way  and  live.  Then  why 
will  you  die  ?  saith  the  Lord."  Then  we  come  to  the  pas- 
sage here :  "God  would  have  all  men  to  be  saved."  "And 
God  so  loved  the  world  that  He  gave  His  only  begotten 
Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  on  Him  should  not  perish, 
but  have  everlasting  life."  In  Luke  15  the  accusation 
made  against  Him  was :  "This  man  receiveth  sinners  and 
eateth  with  them" ;  and  He  answered :  "I  came  to  seek 
and  to  save  that  which  was  lost."  And  the  text  here 
says  that  He  gave  His  life  a  ransom  for  all.  That  all  is 
as  big  here  as  elsewhere.  He  would  have  all  men  to  be 
saved ;  pray  for  all  men  because  He  would  have  all  men 
to  be  saved,  and  because  Christ  gave  His  life  as  a  ransom 
for  all.  Then  this  scripture :  "Jesus  Christ  tasted  death 
for  every  man."  If  there  is  still  doubt,  look  at  the  Lord's 
commission :  "Go  ye,  and  make  disciples  of  all  nations" ; 
"Go  ye  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature."  Finally, 
consider  the  teaching  of  Peter:  "We  must  account  that 
the  long  suffering  of  God  in  delaying  the  coming  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  is  that  all  men  should  have  space  to 
repent  and  come  to  the  knowledge  of  truth."  That's 
the  construction  he  puts  upon  the  apparent  tardiness  of 
the  final  advent  of  our  Lord.  However,  when  we  study 
election  and  predestination,  we  should  study  and  preach 
them  just  as  they  are  taught.  Let  us  not  say,  "I  don't 
know  just  how  to  harmonize  them  with  these  other 
teachings." 

God  did  not  appoint  us  harmonizers  of  His  word. 

As  Dr.  Broadus  used  to  say,  let  the  word  of  God  mean 
just  what  it  wants  to  mean,  every  time.  Preach  both  of 
them.  These  lines  are  apparently  parallel,  but  they  may 
come  together.  If  on  a  map  parallels  of  longitude  come 
together  at  the  poles,  why  not  trust  God  to  bring  together 


86  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

in  Himself  and  in  eternity  His  apparent  parallels  of 
doctrine?  Up  yonder  beyond  the  clouds  they  will  come 
together.    That  is  my  own  method  of  preaching. 

Now,  we  come  to  a  very  important  part  of  this  prayer 
(the  5th  verse)  :  "For  there  is  one  God,  one  mediator 
between  God  and  man,  himself  man,  Christ  Jesus."  Oh, 
if  we  could  but  learn  thoroughly  the  relation  of  this 
passage  to  the  doctrine  of  prayer:  The  Old  Testament 
gives  us  the  type  of  it :  The  victim  is  sacrificed ;  the 
high  priest  takes  the  blood  and  starts  into  the  Holy  of 
Holies  to  sprinkle  it  upon  the  mercy  seat.  Then  he  takes 
a  coal  of  fire  from  the  altar  of  that  sacrifice  and  kindles 
the  frankincense,  which  represents  the  prayers  of  the 
people.  The  high  priest  alone  takes  the  prayers  of  the 
people  there  into  the  Holy  of  Holies :  "Father,  behold  the 
atoning  blood.  On  account  of  that  blood,  hear  these 
petitions  of  the  people  and  answer  them." 

The  thought  is  that  in  offering  up  prayers  to  God,  there 
is  only  one  mediator.  Let  us  not  kneel  down  and  say, 
"Oh,  Virgin  Mary,  intercede  for  me  with  Jesus,  that  He 
may  hear  my  prayers."  Or,  "Oh,  Peter,  John,  Paul, 
James,  ye  saints,  help  me  in  getting  my  prayers  up  to 
heaven."  There  is  just  one  mediator  between  God  and 
man,  and  one  of  the  most  blasphemous  doctrines  of  the 
papacy  is  prayer  to  saints.  Saints  may  pray  for  sinners, 
but  saints  are  not  allowed  to  mediate  prayers  nor  them- 
selves be  prayed  unto.  We  are  not  mediators  with  Jesus. 
There  is  just  one  case  in  the  Bible  where  a  prayer  was 
made  to  a  saint,  and  that  prayer  was  not  answered.  The 
rich  man  lifted  up  his  eyes  and  seeing  Abraham  afar  off, 
said,  "Father  Abraham,  have  mercy  on  me,  etc." 


PAUL'S  CHRISTIAN  EXPERIENCE        37 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  bit  of  history  illustrates  the  uses  of  Paul's  Christian 
experience  and   furnishes   two  models   in  homiletics? 

2.  What  two  reasons  are  assigned  in  the  text  for  Paul's 
conversion  and  show  how  they  constitute  the  poles  of  Salvation? 

3.  What  use  in  preaching  may  be  made  the  second  reason? 

4.  Wherein   was   Paul  the   Chief  of   Sinners? 

5.  How  alone  is  God  now  visible? 

6.  When  and  to  whom  will  he  be  directly  visible? 

7.  Explain  the  prophecy  that  led  the  way  unto  Timothy? 

8.  Wherein  did  Hymenaeus  and  Alexander  make  shipwreck 
concerning  the  faith  and  what  the  difference  between  Shipwreck 
of  faith  and  "concerning  the  faitlif" 

9.  Show  in  two  respects  how  this  heresy  worked  evil? 

10.  What  was  the  power  given  to  Apostles  and  what  cases 
of  its  use.  (i)  To  destruction.  (2)  In  order  to  save.  (3)  And 
what  illustration  of  the  test  of  "turning  over  to  Satan."  (4) 
What  notable  examples  of  "turning  over  to  Satan"  where  it 
worked  for  good  to  its  subject? 

11.  What  the  topic  of  Chapter  II? 

12.  For  whom  should  we  pray  and  what  the  general  reasons 
given  ? 

13.  Cite  other  passages  in  line  with  2:4. 

14.  Can  you  satisfactorily  harmonize  these  passages  with  the 
doctrines   of   Election  and   Predestination? 

15.  What  will  you  do  with  doctrines  you  can't  harmonize? 

16.  What  the  bearing  of  "One  Mediator"  on  the  doctrine  of 
prayer  ? 

17.  What  the  O.  T.  typical  illustration? 

18.  What  errors  of  the  Papacy  at  this  point? 

19.  What  one  case  in  the  Bible  of  praying  to  a  Saint? 

20.  What  the   result  and  what  the  inference? 


IV 


THE  SPHERES  OF  MEN  AND  WOMEN  IN  THE 

CHURCH;  CHURCH  OFFICERS  AND 

THEIR  QUALIFICATIONS 

Scripture:  I  Tim.  2:8 — S- ^3 

THERE  must  be  no  question  that  this  letter  is  about 
church  affairs — affairs  of  the  particular  church  at 
Ephesus.  This  appears  both  from  explicit  state- 
ments (1:3;  3:14-15)  and  from  the  subject-matter.  It 
relates  to  present  heterodox  teachings  (i  13),  public  wor- 
ship (Chap.  2),  church  officers,  pastors,  deacons,  and 
deaconesses,  the  truth  to  be  upheld  by  the  church  (Chap. 
3),  its  danger  through  future  heresies  (Chap.  4),  its  dis- 
cipline and  pension  list  (Chap.  5),  its  social  duties 
(Chap.  6). 

Indeed,  its  express  object  is  to  show  how  its  members 
should  conduct  themselves  in  the  church  assemblies,  wor- 
ship, and  services.  If  we  do  not  keep  this  ruling  thought 
in  our  minds,  we  will  widely  miss  the  mark  in  our  inter- 
pretation. Particularly  must  we  bear  this  in  mind  when 
we  attempt  to  expound  the  last  paragraph  in  Chapter  2, 
verses  8  to  15.  And,  as  Dr.  Broadus  says,  "We  must  let 
the  scripture  mean  what  it  wants  to  mean." 

This  paragraph,  by  any  fair  rule  of  interpretation,  does 
distinguish  sharply  between  the  spheres  of  the  man  and 
the  woman  in  these  public,  mixed  assemblies.  Nothing 
can  be  more  explicit  than  the  way  the  apostle  commences : 
"I  desire  that  the  men  pray  everywhere    *     *     *     j^. 

38 


THE  SPHERES  OF  MEN  39 

like  manner  [I  desire]  that  the  women":  note  the  article 
before  "men"  and  "women."  Carefully  note  three  other 
things : 

1.  The  injunctions  on  the  woman  in  these  church 
assemblies. 

2.  The  reasons  therefor. 

3.  The  encouraging  and  compensating  promise  to 
women  in  their  different  and  restricted  sphere. 

I.     Injunctions 

1,  Not  to  appear  in  the  church  assemblies  in  gorgeous, 
costly,  worldly,  immodest,  flaunting,  fashionable  attire. 
That  mind  is  blind  indeed  that  cannot  both  understand 
and  appreciate  the  spiritual  value  of  this  injunction. 

The  church  assembly  is  not  for  dress-parade.  It  is 
not  a  meeting  at  the  opera,  or  theatre,  or  ball-room,  or 
bridge  party,  or  some  worldly,  social  function,  where 
decollete  dress,  marvelous  head  attire,  and  blazing  jewels 
are  fashionable.  These  worldly  assemblies  have  their 
own  standards  and  reasons  for  their  fashions,  and  it  is 
not  for  us  to  judge  them  that  are  without.  It  is  the 
standard  for  the  church  assemblies,  gathered  to  worship 
God  and  to  save  the  lost,  under  consideration.  Jesus 
Christ,  and  not  Lord  Chesterfield,  established  the  church. 

Our  dress  at  church,  if  nowhere  else,  should  be  simple, 
modest,  in  no  way  ministering  to  vanity,  display,  or  tend- 
ing to  keep  away  the  poor,  or  sad,  or  sin-burdened.  I 
appeal  to  any  cultivated,  real  lady,  who  has  a  sense  of 
proprieties,  to  answer  the  question:  Is  the  church 
assembly  the  place  for  gorgeous  and  costly  dress?  Posi- 
tively, women  are  enjoined  to  seek  the  adornment  of 
good  works. 

2.  They  are  enjoined  to  learn  in  quietness  with  all 


40  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

subjection — not  to  teach  or  have  dominion  over  the  man, 
or  as  expressed  in  I  Cor.  14:33-35.  Evidently  from  all 
the  context,  this  passage  in  Timothy  refers  to  official 
teaching,  as  a  pastor  ruling  a  church,  and  to  prophesying 
in  I  Cor.  14:34-35.  The  custom  in  some  congregations 
of  having  a  woman  as  pastor  is  in  flat  contradiction  to 
this  apostolic  teaching  and  is  open  rebellion  against 
Christ  our  King,  and  high  treason  against  His  sover- 
eignty, and  against  nature  as  well  as  grace.  It  unsexes 
both  the  woman  who  usurps  this  authority  and  the  men 
who  submit  to  it.  Under  no  circumstances  conceivable 
is  it  justifiable. 

II.     Reasons 

1.  Adam  was  first  formed,  then  Eve.  Here  the  allu- 
sion is  obvious  to  the  beginning  of  the  human  race.  The 
whole  race  was  created  in  Adam  potentially.  His  com- 
panion, later  named  Eve  for  a  grace-reason,  was  called 
woman,  which  simply  means  "derived  from  the  man." 
The  man,  by  nature,  is  the  head  of  the  family. 

2.  In  addition  to  this  natural  reason  is  the  explicit 
divine  authority  subjecting  her  to  the  man  because  of 
her  tempting  part  in  the  fall  of  the  race.  Compare  Gen. 
3  :  16  with  this  passage,  2 :  14. 

III.     The  Encouraging  and  Compensatory  Promise 

"But  she  shall  be  saved  through  her  child-bearing,  if 
they  continue  in  faith  and  love  and  sanctification  with 
sobriety."  Whatever  this  difficult  passage  means,  it  is 
intended  as  compensation  to  the  woman  for  her  restric- 
tion in  sphere  and  subjection  of  position.  Two  words 
constitute  the  difficulty  of  interpretation :  (i)  The  import 
of  "saved" — "she  shall  be  saved  through  her  child-bear- 


THE  SPHERES  OF  MEN  41 

ing";  (2)  What  the  antecedent  of  the  pronoun  "they" — 
"if  they  shall  contmue,  &c."  One  obvious  meaning  of 
"saved"  lies  in  the  evident  allusion  to  the  gospel  promise 
in  Gen.  3:15:  "The  seed  of  the  woman  shall  bruise  the 
serpent's  head,"  and  to  Adam's  evident  understanding  of 
the  grace  in  the  promise,  since  he  at  once  changes  her 
name  from  "woman"  (Issha),  i.  e.,  derived  from  the 
man,  to  "Eve"  (Chavvah),  because  she  was  .thus  made 
the  mother  of  all  living  (Chay).  As  for  grace-reasons 
Abram's  name  was  changed  to  Abraham,  Sarai  to  Sarah, 
Jacob  to  Israel,  Simon  to  Cephas — so  she  is  no  longer 
named  "derived  from  the  man,"  but  "the  mother  of  all 
life,"  and  this  came  through  the  bearing  of  a  child — her 
seed,  not  the  man's — who  shall  be  the  Savior  of  the 
world.  What  a  marvelous  change  of  names!  Though 
herself  derived  from  the  man,  yet  from  her  is  derived 
salvation  through  her  son.  See  the  explanation  of  the 
Angel  at  the  Annunciation  to  the  virgin  Mary  in  Luke 
^•3i"35-  She  shall  be  saved  in  bearing  a  child  who  is 
God  manifest  in  the  flesh. 

But  the  true  antecedent  of  the  pronoun  "they" — ^"if 
they  continue,  &c" — suggests  a  more  appropriate  thought, 
at  least  one  in  better  harmony  with  the  context.  Let  us 
get  at  this  thought  by  a  paraphrase :  The  man  shall 
have  his  life  directly  in  authority  and  public  leadership. 
The  woman  shall  live,  indirectly,  in  the  children  she 
bears  if  they  (the  children)  prove  to  be  worthy.  The 
man  lives  or  dies  according  to  his  rule  and  leadership 
in  public  affairs ;  the  woman  lives  or  dies  in  her  children. 
His  sphere  is  the  public  arena.  Her  sphere,  the  home. 
Washington's  mother  lived  in  him;  Lois  and  Eunice 
lived  in  Timothy.  The  Roman  matron,  Cornelia,  pointed 
to  her  boys,  the  Gracchi,  and  said,  "These  are  my 
jewels." 


42  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

The  world  is  better  and  brighter  when  women  sanctify 
and  beautify  home,  proudly  saying,  "My  husband  is  my 
glory,  my  children  are  my  jewels  and  I  am  content  to 
live  in  them.  Why  should  I  desire  to  be  a  man  and  fill 
his  place :  who  then  will  fill  mine  ?"  See  the  ideal  woman 
in  Prov.  31:10-31.  It  would  be  unnatural  and  un- 
grammatical  to  start  a  sentence  with  "she,"  singular, 
and  arbitrarily  change  it  to  "they,"  both  referring  to 
the  same  antecedent.  That  nation  perishes  which  has 
no  homes,  no  family  sanctity,  no  good  mothers. 

Under  my  construction  of  this  paragraph,  I  never  call 
on  a  woman  to  lead  the  prayers  of  a  church  assembly,  nor 
yield  any  kind  of  encouragement  to  a  woman  pastor. 
This  is  very  far  from  denying  any  place  to  woman  in 
Kingdom  activities.  I  have  just  suggested  to  a  woman 
the  great  theme  for  an  essay :  "Woman's  sphere  in 
Kingdom-activities."  The  scriptures  blaze  with  light  on 
the  subject  and  teem  with  illustrations  and  inspiring 
examples.  Understand  that  the  injunction  .against 
woman's  teaching  does  not  at  all  apply  to  teaching  in 
the  school-room  nor  at  home,  but  only  to  teaching  in- 
volving church  rule  that  would  put  man  in  subjection. 
Nor  is  prayer  inhibited,  but  the  leading  in  prayers  in 
the  church  assemblies. 

The  third  chapter,  except  the  last  paragraph,  relates 
to  church  officers,  their  qualifications  and  duties,  and 
the  last  paragraph  relates  to  the  church-mission.  Let 
us  now  take  up  the  first  part.  The  first  officer  of  the 
church  is  the  bishop,  3 :  1-7,  and  we  find  here  that  this 
title,  "episcopos"  (bishop),  is  derived  from  a  function  of 
his  work,  to-wit :  overseeing,  or  superintending,  the  work 
of  the  church.  An  "episcopos"  is  an  overseer.  Consider- 
ing the  church  as  a  flock  that  must  be  guided,  fed,  and 
guarded,  he  is  called  "pastor,"  that  is,  a  shepherd.    He  is 


THE  SPHERES  OF  MEN  43 

also  called  "presbyter,"  i.  e.,  elder,  a  church-ruler.  In 
view  of  his  duty  to  proclaim  the  messages  of  God,  he  is 
called  a  "Kerux,"  that  is,  preacher.  In  view  of  his  duty 
to  expound  the  word  and  instruct,  he  is  didaskalos,  a 
teacher.  But  bishop,  pastor,  elder,  preacher  and  teacher 
do  not  signify  so  many  offices,  but  departments  of  work 
in  the  one  office.  Here  is  a  working  force — there  is 
an  overseer  for  that  working  force ;  here  is  a  flock — 
there  is  a  shepherd  for  that  flock ;  here  is  an  assembly — 
there  is  a  ruler  of  that  assembly,  a  president;  here  is  an 
audience — there  is  a  preacher  to  that  audience ;  here  is  a 
school — and  there  is  a  teacher  for  that  school,  an  ex- 
pounder of  the  word  of  God.  This  office,  from  its  im- 
portance, may  be  learned  from  the  fact  that  "no  man 
taketh  the  office  unto  himself;"  God  calls  him  to  it,  as 
Paul  said  to  the  elders  at  Ephesus,  "The  Holy  Spirit 
hath  made  you  bishops,"  and  the  church  sets  him  apart 
by  prayer  and  the  laying  on  of  hands.  In  the  Northern 
section  of  this  country  some  say,  "What  is  ordination? 
It  is  nothing." 

We  had  better  let  God's  ordinances  stand  as  He  insti- 
tuted them. 

The  duties  of  the  pastor  may  be  inferred  from  the 
terms  above. 

We  now  come  to  consider  the  question  of  his  quali- 
fications, and  the  qualifications  in  this  passage  are 
put  before  us,  first  negatively  and  then  positively,  or 
rather,  the  two  intermingle,  now  a  positive,  now  a 
negative. 

Let  us  look  at  the  negative  qualifications:  "Without 
reproach."  Do  not  make  a  man  the  pastor  of  a  congre- 
gation whose  record  is  all  spotted,  reproaches  coming 
up  against  him  here,  there,  and  everywhere.  Second,  he 
must  be  no  brawler.    I  once  heard  a  pastor  boast  on  a 


44  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

train  that  he  had  just  knocked  a  man  down.  I  said,  "I 
am  going  to  pray  for  you  either  to  repent  of  that  sin, 
or  resign  as  a  pastor."  I  will  admit  there  was  some 
provocation,  but  a  pastor  must  NOT  be  a  brawler,  he  is 
not  a  swash-buckler,  he  is  no  striker.  In  the  case  of  the 
two  wicked  men  who  headed  off  the  Methodist  Circuit 
Rider  and  told  him  he  must  turn  back  I  believe  I  would 
myself  have  fought  under  the  circumstances,  and  as  the 
Methodist  preacher  did  fight,  I  am  glad  he  whipped  the 
other  fellows.  But  the  idea  here  is  that  the  preacher 
must  not  have  the  reputation  of  "throwing  his  hat  into 
the  ring" :  "Now,  there's  my  hat,  and  I'll  follow  it" — 
"don't  you  kick  my  dawg  around."  Not  contentious.  I 
saw  within  the  last  ten  days  the  account  of  a  man's 
death,  and  I  thought  as  soon  as  I  saw  it:  "O,  Lord,  I 
hope  Thy  grace  has  saved  him  and  put  him  in  a  place 
where  he  will  see  that  it  is  not  right  to  be  an  eternal 
disputer."  We  should  not  be  like  Shakespeare's  Hotspur, 
ready  "to  cavil  on  the  9th  part  of  a  hair." 

"No  lover  of  money."  Any  man  that  loves  money  is 
guilty  of  the  sin  of  idolatry ;  covetousness  is  idolatry,  and 
the  fellow  that  holds  the  dollar  till  the  eagle  squeals,  or 
holds  it  so  close  to  his  eye  that  he  cannot  see  a  lost  world, 
or  that  dreams  about  it  and  just  loves  to  pour  it  through 
his  fingers  or  to  hear  the  bank  notes  rustle — he  should 
not  preach. 

"Not  a  novice."  What  is  a  novice?  A  novice  is  one 
just  starting  out.  Now  that  does  not  mean  that  a  novice 
must  not  be  a  preacher.  He  must  learn  to  preach  some 
time,  but  do  not  make  him  the  bishop  of  a  church.  "Not 
a  novice" — why?  "Lest  being  lifted  up  with  pride,  he 
falls  into  the  condemnation  that  came  on  the  devil."  That 
is  where  the  devil  got  his  fall.  Being  lifted  up  with 
pride,  too  proud  to  be  under  another  creature  at  first 


THE  SPHERES  OF  MEN  45 

made  lower  than  himself,  afterwards  to  be  exalted  above 
him. 

These  are  the  negatives.  Now,  let's  look  at  the  posi- 
tives :  First,  "the  husband  of  one  wife."  Does  that 
mean  that  he  MUST  be  the  husband  of  a  wife — is  that 
what  it  means  ?  In  other  words,  that  an  unmarried  man 
ought  not  to  be  a  pastor  ?  I  will  say  this  for  the  unmar- 
ried pastor:  If  he  is  not  wiser  than  Solomon,  more 
prudent  than  Augustus  and  more  patient  than  Job,  he 
certainly  has  rocks  ahead  of  him !  We  had  an  old 
deacon  once  that  put  his  foot  right  on  it  that  that  was 
what  it  meant :  "I  am  willing  to  give  that  young  preacher 
a  place,  I  am  willing  to  recognize  him  and  even  ordain 
him  to  special  mission  stations  to  preach,  but  no  un- 
married man  can  be  pastor  of  this  church." 

Second,  does  it  mean  that  as  a  large  part  of  these 
people  were  heathen,  just  converted,  and  tangled  up  with 
their  polygamous  associations  even  when  they  were  con- 
verted, having  more  than  one  wife,  the  question  being: 
"What  are  you  going  to  do  with  them  and  the  children?" 
Now  does  the  apostle  mean  that  even  if  we  patiently 
bear  for  a  time  with  the  bigamist  or  polygamist  cases,  yet 
we  must  not  make  bishops  of  them?  Some  commentaries 
suggest  that  meaning.  I  will  put  it  in  a  third  form : 
Does  it  mean  that  he  must  have  but  one  wife  according 
to  scriptural  law?  Some  have  been  legally  divorced  un- 
der human  law,  but  not  under  the  scriptures,  and  have 
married  again.  Now,  shall  we  have  a  man  as  a  pastor 
who  may  not  under  human  law,  but  who  under  Christ's 
law,  may  have  more  than  one  wife — is  that  what  it 
means  ? 

We  find  the  same  requirement  in  the  case  of  the  dea- 
con. But  to  proceed  with  qualifications :  "temperate" — 
and  I  think  that  not  merely  means  temperance  in  drink, 


46  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

but  includes  temperance  in  eating.  A  man  may  be  a 
glutton  as  well  as  a  tippler;  and  without  raising  the 
question  as  to  whether  the  pastor  should  be  a  total  ab- 
stainer, one  thing  is  certain :  no  man  should  be  made  the 
pastor  of  a  church  who  drinks  intoxicating  liquors  as  a 
beverage. 

"Sober  minded" — in  the  sense  of  grave,  the  opposite  of 
which  is  levity.  Do  not  put  a  man  in  the  office  of  bishop 
who  is  a  clown.  I  knew  a  man  who  occupied  the  pas- 
toral position  in  a  prominent  place  in  this  state ;  a  very 
brilliant  man.  But  it  was  impossible  to  have  a  reverent 
feeling  toward  him,  for  he  was  the  funniest  man  I  ever 
saw ;  he  could  imitate  birds,  dogs  and  cattle,  and  hearing 
him  imitate  a  stutterer  would  make  a  dog  laugh.  It  was 
exceedingly  funny,  but  after  you  laughed  at  him  and 
listened  to  him,  somehow  or  other  you  did  not  have 
reverence  for  him,  for  he  was  not  sober  minded. 

The  next  word  is  "orderly."  I  said  once  to  a  young 
preacher,  "You  have  mind  enough  to  be  a  preacher, 
and  I  really  believe  you  are  a  converted  man,  but  you 
have  a  disorderly  and  lawless  spirit.  You  will  more 
likely  succeed  as  an  anarchist  than  as  pastor  of  a 
church." 

The  next  phrase  is  "given  to  hospitality."  Here  most 
preachers  stand  the  test.  As  a  rule  they  and  their  wives 
are  very  open  hearted  and  open  handed.  God  bless 
them !  They  have  not  only  given  themselves  to  hos- 
pitality, but  they  have  given  to  it  everything  they  have, 
as  a  rule.  I  have  known  my  father  to  entertain  a  whole 
association  of  70  messengers.  The  highest  I  ever  enter- 
tained was  forty,  and  they  crowded  me,  too,  but  they 
were  a  lot  of  mighty  good  fellows. 

"Gentle" :  he  ought  not  to  be  a  rough  fellow.  "Ruling 
well  his  own  house" :  that's  the  rock  that  some  of  us 


THE  SPHERES  OF  MEN  47 

fall  on.  I  am  sure  that  when  I  was  a  pastor  I  did  not 
measure  up  on  that. 

"Having  a  good  testimony  from  them  that  are  on  the 
outside."  H  we  go  out  over  a  town  or  community  and 
inquire  about  the  preachers,  we  find  that  for  some  preach- 
ers everybody  has  a  good  word,  and  for  some  other 
preachers  no  one  speaks  well  and  some  even  sneer  when 
his  name  is  mentioned.  The  obvious  reason  of  this  re- 
quirement is  that  the  preacher,  in  order  to  fulfill  his 
mission  to  the  lost,  must  be  in  position  to  reach  them. 
If  they  have  no  confidence  in  him  as  a  man — if  they  can 
even  plausibly  question  his  personal  integrity  as  to  hon- 
esty, veracity,  and  purity,  he  can  do  them  no  good. 

But  though  we  have  all  the  characteristics  so  far 
named,  the  lack  of  two  of  them  knocks  us  out :  "aptness 
to  teach"  and  "ability  to  rule."  The  first  does  not  mean 
that  we  must  be  learned ;  that  our  range  of  information 
must  be  extensive ;  that  we  must  have  gathered  a  great 
store-house  of  varied  knowledge.  We  may  have  all  of 
these  and  yet  be  a  dead  failure  in  the  teacher's  office. 
Indeed,  we  may  lack  these — our  ignorance  be  as  vast  as 
another  man's  learning — and  yet  possess  that  essential 
qualification :  "aptness  to  teach."  Ignorance  can  be 
cured,  but  the  natural  incapacity  to  teach  is  irremediable 
so  far  as  this  office  is  concerned.  The  power  to  arrest 
and  hold  attention,  the  power  to  awaken  the  dormant 
and  alarm  the  careless,  the  great  faculty  of  being  able 
to  impart  what  we  do  know  or  may  acquire,  the  being 
able,  not  only  to  say  things  but,  to  so  say  them  that  they 
will  stick,  yea,  the  power  not  of  pouring  into  empty  ves- 
sels from  our  fullness  nor  of  cramming  a  receptacle  with 
many  things,  but  of  suggesting  so  that  the  other  mind 
will  do  the  thinking  and  working  out — that  is  the  teacher. 

Once  only,  though  inclined  thereto  more  than  once,  I 


48  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

put  my  arms  in  tenderness  around  a  ministerial  student 
and  said,  "My  boy,  may  you  and  God  forgive  me  if  I 
make  a  mistake,  but  after  patient  trial  and  much  obser- 
vation, I  am  impressed  that  you  never  can  be  a  preacher. 
You  are  a  Christian  all  right,  your  moral  character  is 
blameless,  but  so  far  as  I  am  capable  of  judging  with  the 
lights  before  me,  you  are  wholly  devoid  of  any  aptness 
to  teach." 

The  Deacon.  So  far  as  moral  qualifications  go,  there 
is  little  difference  between  the  qualifications  of  preacher 
and  deacon.  And  they  are  alike  in  the  requirement  of 
"soundness  in  the  faith."  It  is  not  fitting  that  any  officer 
of  a  church  should  hold  loose  views  on  the  cardinal  doc- 
trines of  Christianity.  Yea,  there  are  strong  and  obvious 
reasons  why  the  collector  and  disburser  of  church  funds 
should  be  as  free  as  the  preacher  from  "the  love  of 
money,"  or  "covetousness,"  lest  in  making  estimates  on 
recommending  expenditures  he  should  make  his  own 
miserly  spirit  the  standard  of  church  liberality. 

But,  also,  because  of  his  official  relation  to  church 
finances,  even  more  than  in  the  preacher's  case,  he  should 
have  business  sense  and  judgment.  Without  going  into 
details  of  the  exposition  of  words  and  phrases,  we  need 
to  impress  our  minds  with  some  general  reflections  on 
this  office : 

I.  In  what  idea  did  the  office  originate?  In  the  neces- 
sity of  the  division  of  labor.  One  man  cannot  do  every- 
thing. Old  Jethro,  the  father-in-law  of  Moses,  was  a 
wise  man  in  his  generation.  He  observed  Moses  trying 
to  do  everything  in  the  administration  of  the  afifairs  of 
a  nation,  and  fortunately  for  succeeding  administrations 
freed  his  mind,  saying  in  substance :  "This  is  not  a  wise 
thing  you  do.  You  weary  yourself  and  the  people  who 
have  to  wait  for  attention.    You  attend  to  things  God- 


THE  SPHERES  OF  MEN  49 

ward,  and  appoint  others  to  attend  to  secular  matters." 
The  good  advice  for  a  division  of  labor  resulted  in  the 
appointment  of  graded  judges,  to  the  great  dispatch  of 
business  and  the  relief  of  the  over-burdened  Moses  and 
the  weary  people.     (See  full  account,  Ex.  i8: 13-26.) 

Certainly  the  judicious  division  of  labor  is  one  of  the 
greatest  elements  of  success  in  the  administration  of  the 
world's  affairs.  From  the  account  in  Acts  6:1-6,  it  is 
evident  that  this  was  the  ruling  idea  in  the  institution  of 
the  deacon's  office.  The  ministerial  office  was  over-taxed 
in  giving  attention  to  the  distribution  of  the  charity-fund, 
to  the  detriment  of  its  spiritual  work.  This  was  bad 
policy  in  economics  and  unreasonable.  It  left  unem- 
ployed competent  talent.  People  to  be  interested  in  any 
enterprise  must  have  something  to  do. 

2.  The  next  idea  underlying  this  office  was,  that  in 
applying  the  economic  principle  of  the  division  of  labor, 
this  office  should  be  supplemental  to  the  preaching  office. 
It  was  designed  to  free  the  preacher's  mind  and  heart 
from  unnecessary  cares  with  a  view  to  the  concentration 
of  his  powers  in  spiritual  matters:  "It  is  not  fit  that  we 
should  forsake  the  word  of  God  and  serve  tables.  Look 
ye  out  among  yourselves  suitable  men  to  attend  to  this 
business.  But  we  will  continue  steadfastly  in  prayer, 
and  in  the  ministry  of  the  word."  Evidently,  therefore, 
the  deacon's  office  is  supplemental  to  the  pastor's  office. 
A  deacon  therefore  whose  services  are  not  helpful  in  this 
direction  fails  in  the  fundamental  purpose  of  his  appoint- 
ment. He  is  not  to  be  a  long-horned  ox  to  gore  the  pas- 
tor, but  a  help  to  him.  Some  deacons  so  act  as  to  become 
the  enemy  and  dread  of  every  incoming  pastor. 

3.  The  third  idea  of  his  office  delimits  his  duties — 
the  charge  of  the  temporalities  of  the  church,  over 
against   the   pastor's   charge   of    the   spiritualities.     Of 


50  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

course,  this  includes  the  finances  of  the  church,  the  care 
of  its  property  and  the  provision  for  comfortable  service 
and  worship,  and  for  the  proper  observances  of  its  ordi- 
nances. I  heard  an  old-time  Baptist  preacher,  at  the 
ordination  of  some  deacons,  expound  this  text  thus : 

"To  Serve  Tables" 

His  outline  was : 

1.  To  serve  the  table  of  the  Lord — arrange  for  the 
Lord's  Supper. 

2.  To  serve  the  table  of  the  poor — administer  the 
charities  of  the  church. 

3.  To  serve  the  table  of  the  pastor — make  the  esti- 
mates and  recommendations  of  appropriations  for  pas- 
toral support  and  other  current  expenses,  collect  and  dis- 
burse the  fund. 

But  we  go  outside  the  record  and  introduce  vicious 
innovations  on  New  Testament  simplicity  if  we  regard, 
or  allow  the  deacons  themselves  to  regard  a  board  of 
deacons  as 

I.  The  Grand  Jury  of  a  Church — to  bring  in  all  bills  of 
indictment  in  cases  of  discipline.  They  are  not  even,  ex- 
officio,  a  committee  on  discipline,  though  not  barred,  as 
individuals,  from  serving  on  such  committees.  Discipline 
is  an  intensely  spiritual  matter,  whether  in  regard  to 
morals  or  doctrines,  and  is  the  most  delicate  of  all  the 
affairs  of  a  church.  It  does  not  at  all  follow  that  one 
competent  as  a  business  man  to  attend  to  temporal  and 
financial  matters  is  the  best  man  to  handle  such  a  delicate, 
spiritual  matter  as  discipline.  The  preacher,  charged 
with  the  spiritualities  of  the  church  is,  ex-officio,  the 
leader  and  manager  here,  as  every  case  of  discipline  in 
the  New  Testament  shows.    In  not  one  of  them  does  a 


THE  SPHERES  OF  MEN  51 

deacon,  as  such,  appear.  Indeed,  any  member  of  a 
church  may  bring  a  case  of  discipline  to  its  attention, 
and  every  member  of  the  church  is  required  under  proper 
conditions  to  do  this  very  thing.     (See  Math.  i8: 15-17.) 

In  reading  this  paragraph  omit  the  "against  thee"  in 
the  second  line  as  unsupported  by  the  best  manuscripts. 
Read  it  this  way:  "If  thy  brother  sin,  go  right  along, 
convict  him  of  his  fault,  between  thee  and  him  alone." 
No  matter  against  whom  the  sin,  nor  whether  it  be  a 
personal  or  general  offense,  as  soon  as  you  know  it,  go 
right  along  and  take  the  steps  required  first  of  you  alone, 
then  of  you  and  others.  If  you  and  the  others  fail, 
even  then  it  does  not  say :  "Tell  it  to  the  deacons."  Offi- 
cially they  have  nothing  in  the  world  to  do  with  it.  "Tell 
it  to  the  church."  When  the  deacons  are  made  a  Grand 
Jury  God's  law  of  responsibility  resting  on  each  brother 
is  superseded  by  a  most  vicious  human  innovation. 

2.  A  board  of  deacons  is  not  a  board  of  ruling  elders 
having  official  charge  of  all  church  affairs.  Baptists  are 
not  Presbyterians  in  church  polity.  It  is  not  the  name, 
but  the  thing,  that  is  objectionable.  We  do  not  dodge 
the  offense  of  having  a  ruling  board  by  calling  them 
deacons.  The  New  Testament  elders  who  ruled  were 
preachers.  There  is  not  even  a  remote  hint  in  the  New 
Testament  that  the  deacon's  office  was  a  ruling  office. 

The  reader  must  observe  that  proving  precedes  ap- 
pointment to  pastoral  or  deacon's  office.  Unknown,  un- 
tried men  should  not  be  put  in  either  office.  One  of  the 
greatest  needs  in  the  Baptist  denomination  to-day  is  a 
corps  of  good  deacons  in  every  church,  attending  to  the 
New  Testament  functions  of  their  office  and  no  other. 
One  of  the  greatest  evils  in  our  denomination  is  making, 
or  allowing  the  corps  of  deacons  to  become  a  grand  jury 
or  a  board  of  rulers.    All  along  the  shores  of  history  are 


52  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

the  debris  of  churches  wrecked  on  these  sunken,  keel- 
splitting  rocks. 

One  other  great  need  of  our  people  is  that  a  great 
sentence  of  this  section  should  be  lifted  up  and  glori- 
fied as  a  good  deacon's  objective  and  incentive:  "For 
they  that  have  served  well  as  deacons  gain  to  themselves 
a  good  standing,  and  great  boldness  in  the  faith  which  is 
in  Jesus  Christ"  (I  Tim.  3: 13).  It  ought  to  become  so 
exalted  that  it  would  become  every  deacon's  inspiration 
and  guiding  star.  As  a  meritorious  distinction,  it  should 
outrank  the  badge  of  the  Legion  of  Honor,  the  Collar  of 
the  Golden  Fleece,  the  degree  of  Ph.D.  conferred  by 
earth's  greatest  university. 

We  need  now  to  consider  only  one  other  sentence: 
"Women  in  like  manner  must  be  grave,  not  slanderers, 
temperate,  faithful  in  all  things."  As  this  verse  is  sand- 
wiched between  two  paragraphs  on  the  deacon's  office, 
and  is  a  part  of  the  section  on  church  officers,  it  would 
be  out  of  all  connection  to  interpret  it  of  women  in  gen- 
eral. And  as  there  is  no  similar  requirement  concern- 
ing the  pastor's  higher  office,  we  should  not  render  it 
"wives"  meaning  the  wives  of  deacons.  The  context  re- 
quires the  rendering :  "women-deacons."  This  rendering 
not  only  has  the  support  of  Romans  16:1,  commending 
Phoebe  as  a  deaconess  of  the  church  at  Cenchrea  and  as 
doing  work  supplemental  to  the  preacher  and  the  admin- 
istrator of  charity  help,  but  meets  a  need  as  obvious  as 
the  need  of  a  male  deacon.  In  every  large  church  there 
is  deacon's  work  that  cannot  be  well  done  except  by  a 
female  deacon.  In  the  administration  of  charity  in  some 
cases  of  women — in  the  preparation  of  female  candi- 
dates for  baptism,  and  in  other  matters  of  delicacy 
there  is  need  for  a  woman  church  official.  The  Waco 
church  of  which  I  was  pastor  for  so  many  years,  had,  by 


THE  SPHERES  OF  MEN  53 

my  suggestion  and  approval,  a  corps  of  spiritually 
minded,  judicious  female  deacons  who  were  very  helpful, 
and  in  some  delicate  cases  indispensable.  In  churches 
on  heathen  mission  fields  the  need  is  even  greater  than 
in  our  country.  Many  an  embarrassment  did  the  worthy 
deaconess  save  me  from,  even  on  the  subject  of  visitation. 
In  some  cases  appealing  for  charity,  only  these  women 
could  make  the  necessary  investigation. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  To  what  matters  is  I  Timothy  confined,  what  the  evidence 
thereof  and  how  does  the  fact  bear  on  the  interpretation  of 
the   book? 

2.  What  distinction  does  the  paragraph  2:  8-15  sharply  make? 

3.  What  the  first  injunction  on  women  in  the  church  as- 
sembhes  and  why? 

4.  What   the    second   and   the    reasons? 

5.  What  the  result  of  having  a  woman  pastor? 

6.  What  the  compensating  promise  for  these  restrictions? 

7.  What  words  constitute  the  difficulties  of  interpreting  this 
promise? 

8.  What  the  antecedent  of  the  pronoun,  "they?" 

9.  What  the  possible  explanation  of  "She  shall  be  saved 
through    her   child-bearing?" 

10.  In  this  context  what  the  more  probable  explanation? 
Convey  it  by  a  paraphrase. 

11.  Illustrate  this  by  a  scriptural,  a  classical  and  a  modern 
case. 

12.  What  O.  T.  passage  is  in  line  with  the  thought  and 
pictures   the  ideal   woman? 

13.  What  the  limitations  on  woman's  praying  and  teaching? 

14.  What  the  two-folk  lesson  of  the  3rd  chapter? 

15.  In  the  paragraph  3:1-7  what  the  name  of  highest  church 
officer   and   its   meaning? 

16.  Give  other  names  for  this  officer  and  their  meanings. 

17.  Give  the  qualifications  for  this  officer  negatively  and 
positively. 

18.  What  the  meaning  of  "husband  of  one   wife?" 

19.  Meaning  of  Novice? 

20.  Why  should  a  pastor  have  good  testimony  of  them  that 
are  without? 

21.  Most  of  these  qualifications  relate  to  his  character,  but 
what  two  bear  on  his  work? 

22.  Show  what  "aptness  to  teach"  does  not  mean  and  then 
show   in   what   it   consists. 


54  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

23.  Cite  other  passages  to  show  that  the  bishop  is  a  ruler. 

24.  What  the   second   office? 

25.  Wherein  do  his  qualifications  coincide  with  the  pastor's? 

26.  Wherein  superior? 

27.  Why  should  not  a  deacon  be  "a  lover  of  money?" 

28.  In  what  idea  did  the  office  originate? 

29.  Cite  an  O.  T.  example. 

30.  What  the  second  idea  underlying  the  office  and  what  the 
passage  showing  it? 

31.  What  the  third? 

32.  Give  the  text  and  outline  of  a  notable  sermon  at  the 
ordination  of  deacons. 

23.  Show  why  a  corps  of  deacons  should  not  be  considered 
a   grand-jury. 

34.  Why  not  a  ruling  board? 

35.  What  officer  of  a  church  has  charge  of  discipline  and 
why?     Of  ruling? 

36.  What  is  a  long-horned  deacon?  Ans. :  One  who  gores 
the  pastor  instead  of  helping  him  and  in  love  of  ruling  runs 
rough-shod  over  the  church. 

Sy.  Why  from  the  context  must  verse  11  be  construed  to 
teach  that  there  should  be  "female  deacons"  and  what  other 
scripture  in  support  and  what  the  need  of  having  them? 


y 

THE  MISSION  OF  THE  CHURCH 

Scripture:  I  Tim.  y.  14-16 

OUR  last  discussion  closed  with  the  13th  verse  of 
the  third  chapter,  on  the  officers  of  the  church, 
their  qualifications  and  duties.  The  closing 
paragraph  of  the  chapter  is  devoted  to  setting  forth  the 
mission  of  the  church  in  relation  to  the  truth  and  what 
the  elements  of  the  truth.  Since  the  contention  that  there 
is  now  existing  a  universal  church  is  based  upon  the 
broad  statements  applied  to  the  church  in  the  letter  to  the 
Ephesians,  I  am  glad  that  in  the  passage  now  to  be  con- 
sidered, and  in  the  address  of  Paul  at  Miletus  to  the 
elders  of  the  church  at  Ephesus  (see  Acts  20),  we  see 
the  broadest  of  these  terms  applied  to  the  particular 
church  at  Ephesus. 

Now,  let  us  read:  "These  things  write  I  unto  thee, 
hoping  to  come  unto  thee  shortly,  but  if  I  tarry  long 
thou  mayest  know  how  men  ought  to  behave  themselves 
in  the  house  of  God,  which  is  the  church  of  the  living 
God,  the  pillar  and  ground  of  the  truth."  Here  "the 
house  of  God,"  "the  church  of  the  Hving  God,"  "the 
pillar  and  ground  of  the  truth,"  "the  flock,"  "the  church 
of  the  Lord  which  He  purchased  with  His  own  blood," 
are  statements  just  as  broad  as  we  can  find  in  the  letter 
to  the  Ephesians,  and  yet  all  these  broad  terms  are  ex- 
pressly applied  to  the  one  particular  church  at  Ephesus, 
for  he  is   discussing  the  heresies  in  that  church,  the 

55 


56      THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

prayer  services  in  that  church,  and  the  officers  of  that 
church. 

The  reader  will  notice  that  when  Paul  wrote  the  first 
letter  to  Timothy,  it  shows  that  on  this  last  tour  of  his, 
after  his  escape  from  the  first  Roman  imprisonment,  he 
had  been  in  Asia  and  at  Ephesus,  and  now  expresses  the 
hope  to  speedily  return.  In  II  Timothy,  we  find  evidence 
that  he  did  return  to  Ephesus,  and  had  a  very  stormy 
time. 

The  word  "behave"  in  the  15th  verse  refers  to  more 
than  mere  proprieties.  It  includes  worship  and  service 
— how  church  members  should  conduct  themselves  in 
the  church,  assemblies.  Right  behavior  on  the  part  of 
both  men  and  women  in  the  worship  and  service  of  the 
public  assembly  is  based  on  three  great  reasons : 

1.  The  Assembly  is  the  church  of  the  Living  God.  The 
institution  is  not  of  human  origin.  It  is  not  a  Greek 
ecclesia  humanly  devised  for  the  transaction  of  munic- 
ipal or  State  business.    It  is  not  a  political  gathering. 

2.  It  is  a  house  for  divine  habitation.  The  letter  to 
the  Ephesians  expresses  the  thought.  (See  Eph.  2:21, 
22.) 

3.  Because  of  its  mission,  being  "The  pillar  and  ground 
of  the  truth."  The  ground  of  a  thing  is  the  foundation 
upon  which  the  superstructure  rests.  A  pillar  is  a 
column  upholding  a  superstructure.  The  attitude  of  the 
church  toward  the  truth  is  that  it  supports  and  upholds 
the  truth  which  teaches  these  doctrines.  The  Bible  alone 
would  not  save  the  world.  There  must  be  an  organiza- 
tion back  of  the  Book,  an  organization  that  has  in  it  the 
elements  of  perpetuity,  otherwise  the  truth  would  go  to 
pieces.  If  there  was  no  competent  body  to  exercise 
discipline,  to  insist  upon  the  gospel  elements  of  the 
truth  in  preaching,  and  to  exercise  jurisdiction  over  the 


MISSION  OF  THE  CHURCH  57 

preachers  of  that  doctrine,  then  there  would  be  all  sorts 
of  preaching,  all  sorts  of  doctrines,  and  there  would  be  no 
conservation  of  the  truth. 

I  now  answer  the  question :  How  does  the  church,  as 
a  pillar  and  foundation,  uphold  the  truth  ? 

1.  By  proclaiming  it  through  its  ministry.  They  carry 
that  truth  to  the  end  of  the  world. 

2.  By  exhibiting  it  pictorially,  through  the  ordinances 
of  baptism  and  the  Lord's  Supper.  Wherever  water 
flows,  wherever  it  stagnates  in  pools,  wherever  it  masses 
in  lakes,  bays,  or  ocean,  there  in  the  yielding  waves  of 
baptism  the  church  pictorially  represents  the  central 
truths  of  the  gospel. 

3.  They  uphold  the  truth  by  vindicating  it  in  their 
discipline.  H  a  man  comes  teaching  for  the  gospel  that 
which  is  not  the  gospel,  if  a  man  lie  and  contradict  the 
gospel,  the  church  upholds  the  truth  by  refusing  to  hear, 
receive  or  in  any  way  give  him  countenance.  Yea,  the 
church  must  expose  his  heresy. 

4.  It  upholds  the  truth  by  illustrating  it  in  all  its  prac- 
tical life.  Every  Christian  father  and  mother,  brother 
and  sister,  boy  and  girl,  every  Christian  citizen,  is  up- 
holding the  truth  by  illustrating  it  in  the  life. 

I  would  not  have  you  forget  these  four  points  by 
which  the  church  upholds  the  truth: 

I — Proclaiming  it  through  its  ministry. 

2 — Pictorially  representing  it  in  its  two  ordinances. 

3 — Vindicating  it  in  discipline. 

4 — Illustrating  it  in  life. 

The  next  matter  we  have  under  consideration :  What 
is  the  truth  which  the  church  is  to  uphold?  Here  we 
have  a  summary  of  the  truth  so  far  as  it  relates  to  the 
mystery  of  Godliness.  It,  of  course,  is  not  a  summary 
of  all  the  truth,  but  it  is  a  summary  of  the  truth  as  it 


58  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

relates  to  the  mystery  of  Godliness  and  these  are  its  six 
elements : 

1.  "God  was  manifested  in  the  flesh."  It  is  immate- 
rial to  the  sense  whether  we  read  "God  was"  or  "Who 
was."  Both  teach  the  incarnation  of  Deity.  The  incar- 
nation of  the  Word  that  was  with  God  and  that  was  God. 
Incarnation  includes  all  that  He  did  in  that  incarnation, 
His  personal  obedience  to  the  Law,  His  teaching  of  the 
fullness  of  the  New  Testament  Law,  His  expiation  for 
sin  on  the  cross,  and  His  resurrection  from  the  dead.  A 
church  that  does  not  uphold  that,  ought  to  be  discoun- 
tenanced and  disfellowshipped  as  a  church.  That  is  the 
purport  of  John's  testimony.     (See  I  John  4: 1-3.) 

2.  "Justified  in  the  Spirit."  Does  the  Spirit  here  mean 
Christ's  own  human  spirit,  or  the  Holy  Spirit?  The 
revisers  evidently  understood  it  to  mean  Christ's  human 
spirit  as  contrasted  with  His  flesh — manifested  in  the 
flesh  and  justified  in  his  spirit.  Their  contention  is  based 
upon  the  absence  of  the  article  before  "Spirit"  and  the 
apparent  parallels  between  "flesh  and  spirit."  The  Cam- 
bridge Bible  thus  paraphrases  to  bring  out  the  rhythmical 
effects  of  the  several  pairs  in  the  verse: 

"Who  in  flesh  was  manifested, 
Pure  in  spirit  was  attested ; 

By  angels'  vision  witnessed. 
Among  the  nations  heralded; 

By  faith  accepted  here, 
Received  in  glory  there." 

This  presentation  is  grammatical,  plausible  and  strong. 
If  it  be  the  right  interpretation,  the  sense  of  "justified  in 
spirit"  would  be  that  because  sinless  in  His  inner  man, 
and  because  none  were  able  to  convict  Him  of  sin.  He 
was  justified  or  acquitted  on  His  own  personal  life. 


MISSION  OF  THE  CHURCH  59 

But  the  author  prefers,  as  more  in  consonance  with  the 
line  of  thought  and  far  more  feasible,  to  understand  it  to 
refer  to  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  line  of  thought  would 
then  be: 

1.  God  assumed  human  nature  in  His  incarnation  for 
the  salvation  of  men. 

2.  In  this  incarnation  the  Holy  Spirit  justified  or  vin- 
dicated His  Deity  and  its  claims. 

3.  The  angels  recognized  the  Deity  in  the  flesh. 

4.  As  God  in  the  flesh  He  was  proclaimed  to  all 
nations. 

5.  Wherever  thus  proclaimed  and  attested  He  was  ac- 
cepted by  faith,  i.  e.,  the  truth  so  proclaimed  and  at- 
tested was  credible. 

6.  The  Father's  reception  of  Him  into  glory  after  His 
resurrection  was  a  demonstration  of  His  Deity  in  the 
flesh  and  a  vindication  of  all  His  claims  while  in  the 
flesh. 

Here  we  have  one  great  proposition  embodying  a 
mystery,  God  was  incarnated,  supported  by  five  succes- 
sive evidences :  The  attestation  of  the  Holy  Spirit ;  the 
recognition  by  angels  who  had  known  Him  before  His 
incarnation ;  the  fact  of  its  publication  to  all  nations ;  the 
credibility  of  the  publication,  evidenced  by  the  fact  that 
men  all  over  the  world  believed  it,  and  the  Father  en- 
dorsed it  all  by  receiving  Him  into  original  glory  and 
crowning  Him  Lord  of  all. 

The  mere  rhythm  of  the  parallel,  proverb-style  can 
never  be  equal  in  force  to  this  line  of  thought.  The 
insistence  on  making  "spirit"  mean  "His  human  spirit" — 
not  only  is  redundant  and  tautological,  since  a  human 
spirit  is  already  stated  in  His  being  made  flesh — flesh 
meaning  full  human  nature — but  in  a  similar  construc- 
tion, I  Pet.  3 :  18,   19,  such  interpretation  teaches  most 


60      THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

awful  heresy  and  indefensible  foolishness.  Therefore, 
I  totally  dissent  from  the  thought  of  the  revisers.  It 
means  that  when  God  was  manifested  in  the  flesh,  He,  so 
manifested,  was  vindicated — justified  by  the  Holy  Spirit. 
If  the  reader  asks  when  did  the  Holy  Spirit  justify  the 
Deity  in  His  incarnation,  my  answer  is : 

(i)  At  his  baptism.  Nobody  could  otherwise  know 
that  He  was  the  Christ.  John  the  Baptist  could  not, 
except  by  certain  action  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  "I  knew 
Him  not,"  said  John,  "but  He  that  sent  me  to  baptize 
gave  me  this  sign :  Upon  whom  thou  shalt  see  the  Spirit 
of  God  descend.  He  is  the  Messiah."  And  so  at  the 
baptism  of  Jesus  Christ,  as  He  came  up  out  of  the 
water,  He  prayed  that  this  demonstration  might  take 
place — and  in  the  form  of  a  dove  the  Holy  Spirit  de- 
scended and  rested  upon  Him.  Unenlightened  men  who 
looked  at  Him  in  His  humanity  would  say,  "This  is  no 
God.  This  is  Joseph's  son ;  we  know  his  brothers  and 
sisters,"  But  the  Holy  Spirit  vindicated  Him  in  that 
manifestation ;  justified  Him,  as  did  also  the  Father's 
voice:  "This  is  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I  am  well 
pleased." 

(2)  If  the  reader  again  asks  me  how  next  the  Holy 
Spirit  justified  Him,  I  will  say  that  all  His  teachings  and 
miracles  were  by  the  Spirit  resting  on  Him  without 
measure. 

(3)  The  sacrifice  He  made  in  His  body  for  the  sins  of 
the  world  was  through  the  Holy  Spirit.  When  He  made 
that  sacrifice,  according  to  the  letter  to  the  Hebrews,  that 
ofifering  was  through  the  eternal  Spirit.  If  man  counts 
not  that  a  sacrifice,  the  Holy  Spirit  did. 

(4)  In  raising  His  body  from  the  dead.  They  had 
denied  His  Messiahship  and  His  divinity,  and  demanded 
a  sign  to  prove  it.    The  sign  was  that  God  would  raise 


MISSION  OF  THE  CHURCH  61 

Him  from  the  dead  on  the  third  day,  and  according  to 
this  Apostle  in  another  connection :  "He  was  declared  to 
be  the  Son  of  God  with  power,  according  to  the  Spirit 
of  holiness,  by  the  resurrection  from  the  dead,  even  Jesus 
Christ  our  Lord."    (Rom.  1:4.) 

(5)  Now,  the  fifth  way  that  He  was  justified  by  the 
Holy  Spirit  was  in  the  descent  of  the  Spirit  at  Pentecost 
to  accredit  and  give  power  to  the  church  whose  mission 
was  to  proclaim  this  truth.  This  was  the  Promise  and 
the  sign  without  whose  fulfillment  the  church  dare  not 
preach  that  mystery.  The  coming  of  another  Paraclete 
to  abide  with  them  till  the  return  of  the  absent  Lord,  was 
the  supreme  justification  of  their  preaching  that  God  was 
manifested  in  the  flesh.  See  John  14:16-18;  14:26; 
15  :  26 ;  16 :  7-10,  13-15  ;  Acts  i :  4,  5.  8. 

And  so  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  when  the  Holy  Spirit 
came  down  and  the  church  was  baptized  in  that  Spirit, 
that  was  His  vindication. 

Let's  restate  the  five  points  in  which  the  Spirit  justified 
Him: 

1st — In  His  baptism. 

2nd — Through  whom  all  His  teachings  and  miracles 
were  wrought. 

3rd — In  offering  Himself  for  sin. 

4th — In  raising  Him  from  the  dead. 

5th — In  His  coming  on  the  day  of  Pentecost  to  abide 
with  the  church  until  His  final  advent. 

That  is  the  second  element  of  the  truth  the  church 
must  ever  uphold.    Let  us  see  the  third  element. 

3.  He  was  seen  by  angels.  Men  heard  with  indiffer- 
ence that  a  babe  was  born  at  Bethlehem.  Nobody  would 
pay  any  attention  to  such  an  incident  as  that.  That 
babe  surely  was  not  God.  But  the  angels  who  knew 
Him  up  yonder  in  heaven  recognized  Him  in  His  incar- 


62  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

nation.  The  flesh  could  not  veil  Him  from  their  sight. 
But  when  did  the  angels  so  recognize  him?  When  did 
He  have  their  attestation  of  the  Godhead  in  His 
humanity  ? 

Go  back  to  that  announcement  to  the  shepherds,  where 
they  told  the  shepherds  that  unto  the  world  was  born  a 
Prince  and  Savior,  who  is  Christ  the  Lord,  and  that 
this  would  be  the  sign :  they  would  find  a  babe  wrapped 
in  swaddling  clothes  and  lying  in  a  manger.  They 
recognized  Him  there. 

When  else  did  they  recognize  Him?  Just  after  His 
baptism,  when  He  was  tempted  of  the  devil.  As  the  first 
Adam  was  tempted,  so  the  second  Adam  was  now 
tempted,  and  after  triumphing  in  that  temptation  the 
angels  recognized  Him,  and  came  and  ministered  unto 
Him. 

The  third  time  was  when  He  was  in  the  Garden  of 
Gethsemane,  going  there  in  anticipation  of  the  awful  hor- 
rors of  death,  as  a  malefactor  at  the  hands  of  man; 
death,  as  a  sinner  at  the  hands  of  God ;  death,  in  passing 
into  the  power  of  Satan.  When  He  triumphed  in  that 
temptation  the  angels  came  and  ministered  unto  Him. 

And  the  angels  will  further  bear  witness  to  Him  when 
He  comes  to  judge  the  world.  They  will  come  in  execu- 
tion of  the  divine  will  in  gathering  His  elect,  and  in 
gathering  up  the  tares  to  be  burned.  Man  may  see  no 
divinity  in  that  Babe  of  Bethlehem,  but  the  angels  recog- 
nized Him,  and  I  may  add  that  the  devil  recognized  Him, 
and  all  the  evil  angels.  Whatever  infidelity  may  have 
existed  in  the  minds  of  Pharisee  or  Sadducee,  the  evil 
angels  made  no  mistake.  On  one  occasion  they  said  to 
Him:  "We  know  thee,  who  thou  art,  thou  Holy  One 
of  God."  The  next  element  of  this  truth  is  a  universal 
gospel,  to  be  preached  among  all  nations.    This  appears 


MISSION  OF  THE  CHURCH  63 

from  the  great  commission — Math.  28 :  16-20 ;  Mark 
16:15-20;  Luke  24:46-47;  John  20:22,  23;  Col.  1:23. 

This  commission  was  not  limited  to  Jews:  "Go  ye 
unto  all  the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  crea- 
ture." "Make  disciples  of  all  nations."  That  preaching 
was  done  in  Paul's  time.  He  said  the  gospel  was 
preached  unto  every  creature  under  heaven,  and  it  has 
been  done  since,  generation  by  generation.  We  are 
doing  it  now.  We  do  not  limit  our  missionary  work  to 
America.  We  go  to  Mexicans,  to  Brazilians,  to  Italians, 
to  the  Chinese  and  to  Japanese,  the  Russians,  the  Ger- 
mans, and  Swedes,  telling  them  how  God  was  manifested 
in  the  flesh,  was  justified  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  so 
manifested  He  was  recognized  by  angels.  That  is  the 
theme  of  universal  preaching.  That  this  truth  was  be- 
lieved appears  from  the  history  of  its  preaching. 

Three  thousand  Jews  were  converted  at  Pentecost,  and 
before  the  close  of  that  big  meeting  near  unto  144,000 
Jews  were  converted.  Some  of  the  Jerusalem  sinners 
believed  on  Him.  His  great  persecutor,  Saul  of  Tarsus, 
believed  on  Him.  Then  His  gospel  was  carried  to 
heathen  Antioch,  Asia  Minor,  Greece,  Rome,  the  ends  of 
the  earth,  and  wherever  this  gospel  has  been  faithfully 
preached  it  has  been  accepted  and  believed.  It  is  not  a 
gospel  of  empty  sound.  That  is  an  element  of  the  truth 
that  the  church  is  to  uphold.  That  Jesus  was  received 
up  into  glory  appears  from  this  vision  of  Him  there  by 
Stephen,  Paul  and  John. 

But  we  need  not  go  back  to  Pentecost  and  apostolic 
times  for  proof.  Nor  need  we  rely  on  persistent  monu- 
mental evidences — baptism,  the  Lord's  supper,  the  Lord's 
day.  Fresh  evidences  abound  now,  and  we  are  His  wit- 
nesses. If  Jesus  be  now  alive  in  glory  He  can  now  mani- 
fest that  life.     The  continued  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit 


64  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

in  the  call  of  preachers,  in  regenerating  and  sanctifying 
sinners,  attest  it.  Every  new  convert  has  the  w^itness  in 
himself.  Every  prayer  heard,  every  sad  heart  com- 
forted, attests  it.  It  is  just  as  credible  now  as  when  first 
preached,  and  its  saving  power  as  evident. 

My  old  time  teacher  in  Latin  and  Greek  became  an 
infidel.  Our  personal  friendship  continued  till  his  re- 
cent death.  He  said  to  me  once:  "I  like  to  hear  you. 
You  always  interest  me,  but  what  you  preach  about  the 
incarnation,  its  miracles,  its  vicarious  expiation,  cannot 
be  believed.  It  is  unscientific  and  therefore  incredible." 
I  replied,  "Doctor,  I  oppose  your  dogmatic  affirmation, 
not  by  argument,  but  by  the  fact  that  it  is  believed,  and 
has  been  believed  wheresoever  in  the  world  it  has  been 
preached.  Earth's  noblest,  best  and  wisest  have  believed 
it.  Washington,  Gladstone,  Lee,  Jackson,  Chief  Justice 
Marshall  believed  it.  Your  own  mother  believed  it. 
Greenleaf,  the  greatest  international  authority  on  the 
Law  of  Evidence,  declares  it  legally  provable  and  proved. 
Whenever  it  is  hid,  it  is  hidden  to  those  who  are  spiritu- 
ally blind.  The  difficulty  in  its  acceptance  is  not  intel- 
lectual, but  an  alienation  of  heart  from  God." 

That  is  one  of  the  things  the  church  ought  to  uphold, 
one  of  the  truths  concerning  Godliness ;  that  when  He 
is  preached  to  the  world  He  will  be  believed,  He  will  be 
accepted. 

It  has  been  said,  if  this  mystery  of  Godliness  be  so 
credible,  why  do  not  Jews,  His  own  people,  accept  it? 
The  answer  is  (i)  Many  of  them  did  accept  it.  (2) 
Some  of  them  now  accept  it.  (3)  In  later  days  all  of 
them  will  accept  it. 

Paul  explains  why  some  of  them  rejected  it  then,  and 
most  of  them  now  reject  it.  (11  Cor.  3:15,  16;  Rom. 
11:7,  10,  25.) 


MISSION  OF  THE  CHURCH  65 

He  foretells  when  and  how  the  whole  nation  will  one 
day  accept  it,  Rom.  ii:ii,  12,  26.  In  this  he  agrees 
with  their  ancient  prophets.  (Isa.  66:7,  8;  Ezek.  chap- 
ters 36,  37;  Zech.  12:8 — 13:1.) 

Let  us  look  at  the  sixth  element:  "Received  up  in 
glory."  If  God  had  not  received  Him,  all  of  His  claims 
would  have  been  set  aside;  but  the  record  tells  us  that 
the  last  time  the  disciples  saw  Him  He  was  going  up 
into  the  clouds.  A  prophetic  psalm  tells  us  what  hap- 
pened as  He  approached  heaven,  shouting:  "Lift  up 
your  heads,  oh  ye  gates;  and  be  ye  lifted  up,  ye  ever- 
lasting doors,  and  let  the  King  of  glory  come  in.  Who 
is  this  King  of  glory?  I,  the  Lord,  mighty  to  save." 
And  when  He  was  received  up  into  glory,  the  test  He 
gave  them  that  He  would  be  received  was  the  descending 
of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  point  is  just  this :  If  Jesus  was 
raised  from  the  dead  and  ascended  up  into  heaven.  He  is 
alive  now.  That  is  what  He  says :  "I  am  He  that  was 
dead  but  am  alive."  If  Jesus  is  alive  He  can  right  now 
manifest  that  life  just  as  well  as  when  He  was  alive 
and  walking  the  streets  of  Jerusalem.  Arguments  on 
a  monument  are  very  poor  things  when  compared 
with  arguments  based  upon  present  evidences  that 
Christ,  the  living  God,  is  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of 
lords. 

Paul,  elsewhere,  gives  summaries  of  the  truths  that 
the  church  is  to  uphold,  some  of  them  very  much  like 
this.  For  instance,  in  Romans,  "It  is  Christ  that  died, 
He  is  risen  again,  He  is  exalted  to  the  right  hand  of 
the  Majesty  on  high.  He  ever  liveth  to  make  intercession 
for  us,"  or  as  he  puts  it  in  another  passage:  "I  delivered 
unto  you  that  which  I  also  received ;  how  that  Christ 
died  for  our  sins,  according  to  the  scriptures  and  that 
He  was  buried  and  that  He  is  risen,  and  that  He  was 


66  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLFS 

recognized  when  raised."     But  these  six  elements  here 
are  limited  to  the  mystery  of  Godliness. 


QUESTIONS 

1.  Upon  what  is  based  the  contention  that  there  now  exists  a 
universal  church? 

2.  How  does  this  passage  written  concerning  the  Church  at 
Ephesus,  and  Paul's  previous  address  to  the  Ephesian  elders 
at   Mile'tus    (Acts  20)    disprove  it? 

3.  What  the  meaning  of  "behave  themselves"  in  verse  15? 

4.  On  what  three  reasons  is  the  exhortation  to  "behave"  in 
the  Church  Assembly  based  and  what  the  force  of  the  first? 

5.  Prove  the  second   from  the   letter  to  the  Ephesians. 

6.  Explain  "Pillar  and  ground"  in  the  third. 

7.  What  would  be  the  result  if  there  were  no  church  to 
uphold  the  truth? 

8.  In  what  four  ways  does  the  church  uphold  it? 

9.  What  the  one  great  truth  the  church   must   uphold? 

10.  What  the   six   elements  of  the   Mystery  of  Godliness? 

11.  How  much  is  included  in  the  first  element,  "God  was 
manifested  in  the  flesh?" 

12.  What   the  testimony  of  John  on   this  point? 

13.  What  should  be  our  attitude  toward  a  man  or  a  so-called 
church  denying  this  truth? 

14.  In  the  second  element  "Justified  in  Spirit"  what  the 
controversy? 

15.  Give  the  argument  and  paraphrase  supporting  the  view 
that  it  means  Christ's  human  spirit  and  then  the  meaning  of 
the  phrase. 

16.  Give  the  author's  line  of  thought  in  support  of  the  con- 
tention that  it  means  the  Holy  Spirit. 

17.  Where  do  we  find  a  similar  construction  and  what  heresy 
and  foolishness  result  from  making  "spirit"  in  that  connection 
mean  "Christ's  human  spirit?" 

18.  If  the  author's  contention  be  right  when  did  the  Holy 
Spirit  justify  God  incarnate? 

19.  Explain  "seen  of  angels"  and  its  bearing  on  the  line 
of  thought. 

20.  When  this   recognition  by  angels? 

21.  Cite  proof  that  the  Devil  and  his  demons  recognized  God 
in  the  flesh. 

22.  On  what  three  occasions  did  Satan  himself  assail  God 
in  the  flesh  and  what  the  result  in  each  case? 

23.  What  proof  in  the  next  chapter  that  the  demons  fight 
this  truth? 

24.  Where  do  we  find  embodied  the  next  element — a  universal 
Gospel? 


MISSION  OF  THE  CHURCH  67 

25.  What  the  historic  evidence  of  the  next  element,  "believed 
on  in  the  world?" 

26.  What  the  monumental  proof? 

27.  What  the  proof  of  to-day? 

,28.     Relate    the    incident    in    this    connection    concerning    the 
author's  infidel  friend. 

29.  Where  the  only  difficulty  in  its  universal  acceptance? 

30.  If  it  be  incredible  to  any  what  the  cause?     Quote  Paul. 

31.  Why  do  not  Jews   believe  it?     Quote   Paul. 

32.  When   will   they   believe   it?     Quote    Paul   and   cite   the 
prophets. 


VI 


THE  MYSTERY  OF  LAWLESSNESS.    A  GOOD 
MINISTER  OF  JESUS  CHRIST 

Scripture:  I  Tim.  4:1-16 

OUR  last  discussion  considered  the  church  of  the 
living  God,  upholding  the  mystery  of  Godliness. 
This  chapter  commences  with  a  view  of  the  Syn- 
agogue of  Satan,  upholding  the  mystery  of  Lawlessness. 
God's  intervention  was  a  mystery.  Satan's  intervention 
was  a  mystery.  Both  a  mystery  because  supernatural. 
The  two  mysteries  are  in  opposition — the  one  working  to 
man's  salvation — the  other  to  man's  damnation.  Both 
propagated  by  human  agency;  both,  a  fulfillment  of 
prophecy. 

4 :  I — "But" :  This  conjunction  teaches  that  what  fol- 
lows is  not  in  line  with  the  foregoing,  but  in  opposition. 

4 : 1 — "The  Spirit  saith"  may  mean  either  "hath  said" 
in  a  former  revelation,  or  "now  saith"  by  inspiration  of 
the  apostle  writing.  In  this  case  it  is  both.  That  con- 
stant inspiration  rested  on  the  apostle  appears  from  Acts 
20 :  23 :  "The  Holy  Spirit  testifieth  unto  me  in  every  city, 
saying  that  bonds  and  afflictions  abide  me."  So  we  are 
not  necessitated  to  find  that  what  the  Spirit  here  said  is 
a  quotation  from  a  previous  record.  In  fact,  however, 
the  substance  of  it,  and  more  besides,  appears  in  II  Thess, 
2:3-12. 

Here  we  find  that  a  great  apostasy  and  the  revelation 

68 


MYSTERY  OF  LAWLESSNESS  69 

of  the  man  of  sin  must  precede  the  final  advent  of  our 
Lord ;  that  this  apostasy  is  a  "mystery  of  lawlessness" 
already  commencing  to  work;  that  Satan  is  back  of  it; 
that  just  before  the  final  advent  he  will  incarnate  himself 
in  the  man  of  sin,  accrediting  him  with  miracles,  "power, 
signs,  and  wonders,"  intended  to  create  a  lying  impres- 
sion, working  a  delusion  with  all  deceit  in  unrighteous- 
ness in  them  that  perish ;  that  God  permits  this  subjection 
to  Satan  because  they  received  not  the  love  of  the  truth. 
All  of  which  is  in  accord  with  our  lesson  and  the  later 
testimony  of  Peter  (II  Pet.  3: 1-4),  and  of  John  (I  John 

4:1-3)- 

4 : 1 — "Some  shall  fall  away  from  the  faith."  This  is 
apostasy,  not  from  personal  faith,  but  from  "the  faith" — 
the  truth  embodied  in  the  mystery  of  Godliness. 

4 : 1 — "Giving  heed  to  seducing  spirits."  These  spirits 
are  demons,  Satan's  evil  angels. 

4 : 1 — "Doctrines  of  demons."  As  the  mystery  of  God- 
liness was  embodied  in  doctrines  considered  in  last  chap- 
ter, so  the  mystery  of  lawlessness  is  embodied  in  doctrines, 
some  of  which  are  to  be  named  here,  and  others  else- 
where. 

4:2 — "Through  the  hypocrisy  of  men  that  speak  lies, 
branded  in  their  own  consciences  as  with  a  hot  iron." 
On  this  sentence  note: 

(i)  As  the  mystery  of  Godliness  is  propagated  through 
human  agents  under  the  influence  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  so 
the  mystery  of  lawlessness  is  propagated  through  human 
agents  under  the  influence  of  Satan. 

(2)  Over  against  the  "good  minister  of  Jesus  Christ" 
(4:6-16),  we  have  here  the  character  of  the  evil  minister 
of  Satan: 

(a)  They  received  not  the  love  of  the  truth; 

(b)  They  are  hypocrites; 


70  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

(c)  They  have  Satan's  brand  on  their  consciences,  as 
Paul  bore  the  mark  or  brand  of  Jesus ; 

(d)  They  teach  Hes; 

(e)  They  are  God-abandoned  to  a  delusion  of  Satan 
that  they  may  perish. 

What  then  are  the  "doctrines  of  demons"  that  embody 
this  mystery  of  lawlessness? 

4:3 — "Forbidding  to  marry,  and  commanding  to  ab- 
stain from  meats,  which  God  created  to  be  received  with 
thanksgiving  by  them  that  believe  and  know  the  truth." 

So  far  as  this  scripture  testifies,  these  doctrines  consist 
of  one  prohibition:  "Forbidding  to  marry,"  and  of  one 
command:  "To  abstain  from  meats."  Both  are  tenets 
of  the  Gnostic  philosophy  condemned  in  all  the  later  New 
Testament  books,  and  to  which  so  much  attention  is  de- 
voted in  John's  gospel  and  in  the  letters  of  the  first 
Roman  imprisonment,  and  which  abound  in  the  letters  of 
Peter,  Jude,  and  Revelation. 

The  theory  of  both  the  prohibition  and  the  command 
is  based  on  the  heresy  that  sin  is  limited  to  matter,  re- 
siding in  the  body  alone,  and  so  by  ignoring  sexual  rela- 
tions, and  restricting  food  to  a  vegetable  diet,  the  body 
may  be  kept  in  subjection  and  sin  avoided.  It  is  the 
doctrine  of  celibacy  and  asceticism,  and  is  responsible  for 
all  hermits,  whether  heathen  or  Christian,  that  seek 
escape  from  sin  in  isolation  from  one's  fellows,  and  is 
the  father  of  monasteries  and  the  mother  of  nunneries. 
It  is  the  doctrine  of  Buddha  and  the  Papacy.  It  opposes 
the  gospel  teaching  that  sin  is  of  the  inner  man — "apart 
from  the  body" — and  consists  of  spirit  alienation  of 
mind  and  heart  from  God.  Envy,  malice,  jealousy,  lying, 
stealing,  blasphemy,  pride,  vanity,  slander,  idleness,  self- 
ishness, and  the  like,  are  sins.  These  proceed  from  the 
inner  man.     To  eat  meat  on  Friday  is  not  a  sin.    To 


MYSTERY  OF  LAWLESSNESS  71 

marry,  multiply  and  populate  the  earth  and  subdue  it 
was  the  original  commission  of  man  in  innocence.  The 
very  depths  of  Satan  are  disclosed  in  making  that  to  be 
sin  which  is  not  sin,  and  in  making  that  to  be  righteous- 
ness which  is  sin.  And  especially  is  his  doctrine  deadly 
in  the  assault  on  the  gospel  teaching  that  marriage  is  hon- 
orable in  all.  In  the  beginning  of  time  the  Father  insti- 
tuted it,  in  the  fulness  of  time  the  Son  honored  it  with 
His  presence,  in  the  end  of  time  the  Holy  Spirit  sanctifies 
it  by  bestowing  its  name  on  the  relation  eternally  sub- 
sisting between  Christ  and  His  church.  No  idle  hermit 
in  his  cave,  no  ascetic  monk  in  his  cell,  no  nun  in  her 
convent,  can  bar  out  sin  which  resides  in  the  spirit. 

The  prayer  of  Jesus  was:  "I  pray  not  that  Thou 
shouldst  take  them  from  the  world,  but  that  thou  shouldst 
keep  them  from  the  evil  one."  External  barriers  do  not 
keep  out  the  evil  one.  He  can  enter  wherever  atmosphere 
enters. 

Experiment  may  show  what  diet  in  particular  cases 
promotes  physical  health.  Let  each  one  eat  the  food, 
whether  vegetable  or  animal,  which  in  his  own  case  is 
promotive  of  a  sound  body.  Says  this  section :  "Meats 
which  God  created  to  be  received  with  thanksgiving  by 
them  that  believed  and  knew  the  truth.  For  every  crea- 
ture of  God  is  good,  and  nothing  is  to  be  rejected  if  it  be 
received  with  thanksgiving,  for  it  is  sanctified  through 
the  word  of  God  and  prayer." 

The  temporary,  symbolic  distinction  of  the  Mosaic  Law 
between  "clean  and  unclean  meats"  was  nailed  to  the 
cross  of  Christ.  Therefore  says  our  apostle  elsewhere: 
"Let  no  man  judge  you  in  meats  and  drinks,"  and  par- 
ticularly pertinent  are  his  words:  "If  ye  died  with  Christ 
from  the  rudiments  of  the  world,  why,  as  though  living 
in  the  world,  do  ye  subject  yourselves  to  ordinances: 


72  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

handle  not,  nor  taste,  nor  touch — all  things  are  to  perish 
with  the  using — after  the  precepts  and  doctrines  of  men? 
Which  things  have  indeed  a  show  of  wisdom  in  will- 
worship,  and  humility,  and  severity  to  the  body,  but  are 
not  of  any  value  against  the  indulgence  of  the  flesh." 

A  Good  Minister  of  Jesus  Christ  (4:6-16) 

We  have  just  considered  on  4:2  the  evil  minister  of 
Satan,  and  now  sketch  on  opposite  canvass,  in  salient 
strokes,  the  outline  of  a  good  minister  of  our  Lord. 

I.  The  mater  of  his  preaching. 

(i)  Positively,  having  been  himself  nourished  in  the 
words  of  the  faith  and  of  the  good  doctrine,  of  the  mys- 
tery of  Godliness,  he  puts  the  brethren  in  mind  of  them. 

(2)  Negatively,  he  refuses  to  teach  profane  and  old 
wives'  fables.  Here  we  have  "fables"  opposed  to  reve- 
lations from  God.  These  fables  are  the  lies  spoken  by 
the  hypocritical,  conscience-seared  ministers  of  evil ;  they 
are  doctrines  inspired  by  seducing  demons,  and  hence 
profane,  irreverent,  Godless.  From  Titus  i :  14  it  appears 
that  these  fables  were  of  Jewish  origin,  "commandments 
of  men"  that  make  void  the  word  of  God.  They  are 
further  characterized  as  the  fables  of  old  wives.  This 
alludes  to  the  fact  that  there  are  certain  women  among 
the  ministry  of  Satan,  and  suggests  another  form  of 
Gnosticism — unbridled  license — equally  derived  with 
asceticism  from  the  one  root  heresy  that  sin  resides  only 
in  the  body  and  as  the  body  perishes  without  a  resurrec- 
tion, it  made  no  difference  of  what  uses  it  was  made  an 
instrument.  In  the  next  letter  to  Timothy  these  teachers 
are  thus  described :  "Holding  a  form  of  Godliness,  but 
having  denied  the  power  thereof :  from  these  also  turn 
away.   For  of  these  are  they  that  creep  into  houses  and 


MYSTERY  OF  LAWLESSNESS  73 

take  captive  silly  women  laden  with  sins,  led  away  by 
divers  lusts,  ever  learning  and  never  able  to  come  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  truth.  And  even  as  Jannes  and  Jambres 
withstood  Moses,  so  do  these  also  withstand  the  truth; 
men  corrupted  in  mind,  reprobate  concerning  the  faith" 
(II  Tim.  3:5-8). 

The  phrase,  "old  wives,"  however,  does  not  refer  to 
corrupt  women  who  are  willing  victims  of  these  evil 
ministers  of  Satan,  but  to  Godless  old  women  themselves 
teachers  of  fables.  They  are  of  the  class  who  deal  in 
palmistry,  magic,  or  other  methods  of  fortunetelling, 
gathering  their  herbs  for  love  philters,  or  other  materials 
for  working  charms,  and  brewing  their  potions  with  in- 
cantations, somewhat  after  the  method  of  the  three  hags 
in  Macbeth. 

Edward  Eggleston,  in  "The  Hoosier  Schoolmaster," 
gives  a  fitting  description  of  one  of  these  old  "grannies" 
that  filled  a  neighborhood  with  evil  superstitions.  I  my- 
self knew  one  who  wrought  serious  evil  in  several  fami- 
lies by  persuading  the  wives  that  marriage  was  an  evil 
institution,  thus  bringing  about  separations  that  wrecked 
homes  and  scattered  children. 

2.  His  athletics  in  teaching  and  practice.  While  not 
under-estimating  physical  athletics,  he  stresses  rather 
spiritual  athletics.  He  concedes  some  profit  in  physical 
training :  "Bodily  exercise  is  profitable  for  a  little  in  this 
life."  But  his  ideal  man  is  not  a  winner  in  the  Olympic 
Games,  in  the  Ephesian  Amphitheatre,  in  prize  rings, 
ball  games,  or  foot-races,  or  boat-races.  His  heroes  are 
not  gladiators.  As  elsewhere  in  many  of  his  letters  he 
uses  the  exploits  and  activities  of  the  outer  man  athlete 
as  images  of  a  spiritual  race-course  or  gymnasium,  be- 
cause exercise  in  Godliness  has  the  promise  of  both  this 
life  and  the  life  to  come. 


7*  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

The  saying  which  gives  the  greater  glory  to  spiritual 
exercise  is  not  only  a  "faithful  one,"  but  "worthy  of  all 
acceptation."  He  is  indeed  a  good  minister  of  Jesus  who 
can  develop  among  Christian  people  an  enthusiasm 
for  spiritual  culture  that  will  equal  the  world's  enthusiasm 
for  physical  athletics. 

John  Bunyan  on  this  line,  in  his  "Heavenly  Footman" 
and  "Pilgrim's  Progress,"  not  only  won  a  tablet  in  West- 
minster Abbey  but  is  heard  to-day  in  all  the  languages  of 
the  world,  and  welcomed  in  all  its  homes.  Without  en- 
dorsement of  some  of  their  teachings,  the  author  rejoices 
to  honor  John  Wesley  and  Savonarola  in  their  great  ref- 
ormations towards  "exercising  unto  Godliness."  Nor 
does  he  hesitate  to  say  that  John  Wesley's  class  in  spir- 
itual athletics  has  not  only  conferred  more  honor  upon 
Oxford  University  than  all  its  boat-clubs  and  ball  teams, 
but  its  enthusiasm  has  fired  the  Western  Continent  and 
awakened  myriads  to  "strive  unto  holiness."  A  good 
minister  "labors  and  strives  to  this  end,  because  he  has 
his  hope  set  on  the  living  God  who  is  the  Savior  of  all 
men,  especially  of  them  that  believe."  That  preacher's 
doctrine  is  defective  and  his  ministry  narrow  and  barren 
who  stops  at  election,  predestination,  and  justification, 
and  ignores  the  salvation  in  us — sanctification  developing 
the  life  given  in  regeneration — and  has  no  heart  and 
hopefulness  in  preaching  a  universal  gospel. 

3.  His  own  example: 

(a)  In  himself  heartily  believing,  without  wavering, 
the  vital  doctrines  of  the  faith.  Loose  views  on  any 
fundamental  doctrine  should  forever  bar  a  man  from 
the  ministry.  That  presbytery  is  itself  disreputable  and 
disloyal  that  lays  the  hands  of  ordination  on  a  man  who 
has  loose  views  on  the  incarnation,  the  vicarious  expia- 
tion, the  resurrection,  the  exaltation,  and  intercession  of 


MYSTERY  OF  LAWLESSNESS  75 

our  Lord,  and  upon  the  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures, and  upon  the  necessity  of  regeneration  and 
sanctification. 

(b)  In  character  and  Hfe:  "Let  no  man  despise  thy 
youth;  but  be  thou  an  ensample  to  them  that  beheve  in 
word,  in  manner  of  Hfe,  in  love,  in  faith,  in  purity"  (I 
Tim.  4: 12). 

(c)  In  diligent  study  and  practice :  "Till  I  come,  give 
heed  to  reading,  to  exhortation,  to  teaching"  (I  Tim. 
4: 13).  "Be  diligent  in  these  things;  give  thyself  v^holly 
to  them,  that  thy  progress  may  be  manifest  to  all"  (I 
Tim.  4:15)- 

(d)  In  stirring  up  by  exercise  any  spiritual  gift :  "Neg- 
lect not  the  gift  that  is  in  thee,  which  was  given  thee  by 
prophecy,  with  the  laying  on  of  the  hands  of  the  presby- 
tery" (I  Tim.  4:  14). 

In  Timothy's  own  case  a  prophecy  went  before — ^by 
Paul,  Silas,  or  some  other  prophet — that  a  great  gift  of 
the  Spirit  would  rest  on  him,  and  it  did  come  on  him  as 
the  hands  of  ordination  touched  his  head.  Indeed,  the 
laying  on  of  hands  symbolizes  the  imparting  of  Spirit 
power  as  appears  from  Acts  8: 17;  19:6.  On  these  two 
passages  in  Acts,  with  Hebrew  6:2,  the  Six  Principles 
Baptists  always  followed  baptism  with  a  laying  on  of 
hands,  and  strangely  enough  Episcopalians,  founded  on 
the  same  passages  the  rite  of  Confirmation  by  the  laying 
on  of  the  hands  of  their  bishop. 

As  illustration  of  (c)  above,  I  may  allude  to  a  warning 
I  once  gave  to  a  spoiled  boy-preacher :  "My  boy,  you  are 
in  great  danger.  You  have  been  complimented  so  much 
for  the  fire  of  your  off-hand,  maiden  sermons  you  have 
quit  studying.  You  have  no  library  and  do  not  read. 
You  have  already  contracted  the  habit  of  relying  on 
preaching  over  your  first  dozen  revival  sermons.    Such  a 


76  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

habit  calls  for  a  wide  range  of  ever-changing  pasturage. 
The  first  time  such  a  sermon  is  a  juicy  roast,  next  time  it 
is  only  warmed  over,  next  time  it  is  hash,  next  time  it  is 
soup  out  of  the  bones.  Soon  these  sermons  that  once 
warmed  your  heart  will  no  longer  taste  well,  not  even  in 
your  own  mouth,  and  then  you  may  be  sure  they  do  not 
taste  well  to  the  congregation.  The  spiritual  stomach,  as 
well  as  the  physical,  calls  for  freshness,  variety  and 
change  in  the  food  served.  When  this  stage  of  non- 
appreciation  in  your  hearers  arrives,  you  have  to  move 
on  to  another  field ;  you  soon  will  acquire  the  reputation 
of  not  being  able  to  hold  any  field  long.  When  your 
family  increases  you  will  find  that  'three  moves  are  equal 
to  a  burn.'  Then  will  you  become  sore  and  soured  in 
spirit,  and  doomed  to  join  the  murmurers,  complainers, 
and  kickers — you  will  be  avoided  as  'the  man  with  a 
grievance.' " 

I  am  sorry  to  say  my  foreboding  in  his  case  came  to 
pass.  I  solemnly  warn  young  preachers  against  mental 
and  spiritual  laziness.  The  unused  gift  or  faculty, 
whether  natural  or  spiritual,  goes  into  paralysis  and  bank- 
ruptcy. When  a  stream  ceases  to  flow  it  stagnates.  Even 
the  waters  of  Ezekiel's  River  of  Life  that  became  side- 
tracked into  basins  of  stillness,  became  only  salt-marshes. 
When  a  tree  ceases  to  grow,  it  begins  to  die.  When  a 
farmer  does  not  take  in  new  ground  and  put  out  his 
fences,  the  bushes  and  briers  in  his  fence  corners  require 
him  to  move  in  his  fences.  We  must  give  attention  to 
study  to  enlarge  our  stock  of  preaching  material.  We 
can't  always  preach  on  the  first  principles.  Besides,  it  is 
robbing  the  churches. 

I  believe  it  was  Booker  T.  Washington  who  tells  the 
story  of  his  rebuke  of  a  Negro  church  for  violation  of 
contract  in  not  paying  their  pastor,  and  how  completely 


MYSTERY  OF  LAWLESSNESS  77 

he  was  silenced  by  a  remark  of  one  of  the  sturdy  mem- 
bers :  "We  done  paid  for  them  sermons  last  year." 

Moreover,  I  warn  again  that  to  secure  novelty  and 
freshness,  we  do  not  need  to  turn  to  that  crassest  and 
most  unprofitable  of  sensationalism — that  goes  out  of  the 
record  for  pulpit  themes.  Leave  that  to  worldly  lecturers. 
The  Bible  is  an  unexhaustible  mine  to  the  student  delver 
and  all  the  student-preachers  of  the  world,  generation  by 
generation,  may  let  down  their  little  buckets  into  the 
wells  of  salvation  without  fear  of  lowering  the  water- 
line.    ''Save  thyself  and  thy  hearers." 

QUESTIONS 

1.  How  is  the  last  paragraph  of  I  Tim.  3  contrasted  with 
the  first  paragraph  of  the  next  chapter? 

2.  Why  in  both  cases  a  mystery  and  through  whom  each 
propagated  and  was  each   foretold? 

3.  What  conjunction  suggests  the  opposition  between  the 
two  mysteries? 

4.  "The  Spirit  Saith."  Does  that  mean  "noiv  saith"  or  "hath 
said"  or  both? 

5.  Show  how  II  Thess.  2:3-12  contains  the  substance  of  the 
present  saying  of  the  Spirit  and  with  what  subsequent  writings 
it  accords. 

6.  The  meaning  of  "falling  away  from  the  faith?" 

7.  Who  the  "Seducing  Spirits"  of  4:1  and  how  their  seduc- 
tions embodied? 

8.  On  4:2  answer:  (i)  What  agents  propagate  the  "doc- 
trines of  demons?"  (2)  Their  characteristics?  (3)  With  whom 
in  this  chapter  contrasted? 

9.  So  far  as  this  context  extends  what  the  Doctrines  of 
Demons? 

10.  What  philosophy  inculcated  both  and  what  books  of  N.  T. 
discuss  the  philosophy  and  where  did  it  originate? 

11.  On  what  heresy  is  the  theory  of  these  doctrines  based 
and  what  evils  resulted  from  it  and  in  what  two  religions 
are  they  embodied? 

12.  Show  how  an  attack  on  the  honor  and  sanctity  of  mar- 
riage and  a  teaching  that  isolates  one  from  his  kind  controverts 
the  mission  of  man  as  a  race  and  the  teaching  of  both  Testa- 
ments. 

13.  What  regimen  of  diet  should  each  individual   follow? 

14.  Show    how    the    Gospel    abrogates    the    temporary    and 


78  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

symbolic   distinction   between   "clean   and   unclean"   animals   for 
food  and  characterizes  present  prohibitions  thereon? 

15.  With  whom  is  the  "good  minister  of  Jesus  Christ''  in 
4:6-16  contrasted? 

16.  Gather  up  from  the  paragraph  what  should  be  the  matter, 
negative  and  positive,  of  the  "good  minister's  preaching?" 

17.  What  one  word  characterizes  the  negative  matter  of 
preaching — to  what  is  it  opposed — and  why  the  descriptive 
"profane,"  and  what  means  the  other  descriptive  "old  wives?" 

18.  Show  from  Titus  the  national  origin  of  the  "fables"  in 
question. 

19.  How  does  the  one  heresy,  sin  resident  only  in  matter — 
in  body — teach  two  opposing  evils — asceticism  and  isolation  from 
one's  fellows  on  the  part  of  some  and  unbridled  license  in 
association  with  one's  kind  on  the  part  of  others? 

20.  Where  the  heresy  tends  to  unbridled  license  give  the 
apostle's  description  of  its  subjects  in  the  second  letter  to 
Timothy. 

21.  Give  in  description  and  illustration  the  "Old  Wives"  who 
teach  vicious   superstitions  adverse  to  Gospel  revelation. 

22.  What  the  second  element  of  a  good  minister  of  Jesus 
Christ    and   what  his   attitude   toward   physical   athletics? 

23.  Is  it  possible  to  develop  an  enthusiasm  for  spiritual 
athletics  equal  to  the  world's  enthusiasm  for  physical  athletics? 

24.  On  this  point  what  said  the  author  concerning  John  Bun- 
yan  and  John  Wesley? 

25.  What  may  you  say  of  a  preacher's  doctrine  and  ministry 
whose  preaching  and  life  stops  at  election,  predestination  and 
justification — ignoring  the  salvation  in  tis  through  sanctifica- 
tion's  development  of  the  life  in  regeneration  and  ignoring  a 
universal  Gospel? 

26.  What  the  third  element  in  a  good  minister  and  what  the 
particulars   in   which   this   element   is   exhibited? 

27.  What  the  incident  given  by  the  author  bearing  on  the 
third  particular,  /.  e.,  the  necessity  of  study?  Cite  the  Booker 
T.   Washington  incident. 

28.  According  to  what  and  through  what  was  a  special  spir- 
itual gift  conferred  on  Timothy? 

29.  What  does  "the  laying  on  of  hands"  symbolize? 

30.  Show  what  use  the  Six  Principles  Baptists  and  the  Epis- 
copalians make  of  I  Tim.  4:14  in  conjunction  with  Acts  8:17; 
19:6  and  Heb.  6:2? 

31.  What  follows  the  neglect  to  stir  up  by  exercise  either  a 
natural  or  spiritual  gift  and  how  did   the  author  illustrate  it? 

32.  To  what  should  a  preacher  not  turn  to  satisfy  the  natural 
craving  for  freshness,  variety  and  progress  and  why  is  this 
resort  not  necessary? 


VII 


THE  ADMINISTRATION  OF  INTERNAL 
CHURCH  AFFAIRS 

Scripture:  I  Tim.  5:1-25 

IN  this  chapter  and  the  next  we  consider  the  admin- 
istration of  internal  church  affairs : 

I.  How  to  deal  with  the  different  classes  of  unoffi- 
cial offending  members,  5:1,2. 

2.  How  to  administer  church  pensions  to  widows 
(5:3-16)  and  to  aged  ministers,  5:17,  18. 

3.  How  to  treat  offending  elders — that  is,  preachers, 
5:19-21. 

4.  Why  there  should  be  care  in  ordaining  preachers, 
5:22,  24,  25. 

5.  Slaves  and  masters,  6:1,  2. 

6.  Heterodox  teachers  in  practical  religion,  6 : 3-8. 

7.  The  rich,  6:9,  10,  17-19. 

8.  Quadruple  charge  to  Timothy  or  the  Law  of  Admin- 
istration, 5  :  21,  23 ;  6 :  1 1-16 ;  6 :  20,  21. 

5:1:  "Do  not  reprimand  an  elderly  man,  but  exhort 
him  as  a  father ;  the  younger  men  as  brethren ;  the  elder 
women  as  mothers ;  the  younger  as  sisters,  in  all  purity." 

Whoever  has  charge  of  a  church  will  sometimes  see  in 
the  conduct  of  old  men,  old  women,  young  men,  and 
young  women  things  that  are  not  exactly  right,  and  will 
wonder  how  to  deal  in  judicious  discrimination  with  these 
cases,  especially  if  he  is  a  young  man,  as  Timothy  was. 

79 


80  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

This  direction  solves  the  problem:  "Do  not  reprimand, 
but  appeal  to  the  elderly  man  as  a  father,  to  the  elder 
women  as  mothers,  deal  with  the  young  men  as  brothers, 
with  the  young  women  as  sisters."  This  is  capital  advice 
to  young  pastors. 

The  young  preacher,  perhaps  not  much  more  than  a 
boy,  who  gets  up  into  the  pulpit  with  the  air  of  a  lord 
and  hurls  Jupiter's  thunderbolts,  knocking  down  an  old 
man  here,  an  old  woman  there,  a  young  man  here,  and  a 
young  woman  yonder,  had  as  well  quit.  This  does  not 
mean  that  we  are  to  be  silent  when  wrong  exists.  There 
is  a  way  to  get  at  it  judiciously,  and  the  text  enjoins  the 
right  way.  We  should  not  let  people  get  the  idea  that  we 
are  "pulpit  tyrants"  or  "bosses." 

Pensioning  of  Widozvs  by  the  Church.  This  matter 
extends  from  the  third  verse  down  to  the  sixteenth  verse 
inclusive,  and  refers  to  a  list  of  widow-pensioners  to  be 
supported  by  the  church.  The  Anglican  church  and  the 
Romanists  try  to  make  this  out  an  order  of  women  de- 
voted to  celibacy,  but  there  is  nothing  in  the  text  to  indi- 
cate such  a  thing.  It  is  simply  a  list  of  those  "widows 
indeed"  dependent  on  the  church  for  support.  The 
Mosaic  law,  in  Deuteronomy,  is  very  broad  concerning 
the  caring  for  widows  and  orphans,  and  in  the  New 
Testament  special  emphasis  is  laid  on  it. 

In  Acts  6  we  have  our  first  church-history  on  the  sub- 
ject. When  they  had  things  in  common,  selling  their 
possessions  and  turning  the  proceeds  into  a  common 
fund,  which  was  distributed  daily,  a  complaint  arose 
among  the  Hellenist  Jews  that  their  widows  were  being 
neglected.  Let  us  keep  that  passage  in  mind  as  we  study 
this. 

We  are  now  to  consider  the  important  question :  What 
women   are   entitled   to   be   supported   by   the   church? 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  81 

"Honor  widows  that  are  widows  indeed."  But  who  are 
widows  indeed,  must  be  very  carefully  determined.  The 
apostle  defines  negatively  and  positively : 

I.  Not  one  who  has  children  or  grandchildren  able  to 
take  care  of  her.  They  are  lacking  in  piety  if  they  allow 
the  older  people  of  their  family  to  suffer  or  to  become 
a  burden  on  the  church.  In  a  community  like  Ephesus, 
where  the  number  of  Christians  was  so  vast,  and  where 
there  was  such  a  large  proportion  of  the  poorer  class  of 
people,  the  list  of  pensioners  on  a  church  would  be  large 
in  any  event.  It  was  necessary,  in  order  not  to  overbur- 
den the  church,  not  to  allow  on  this  list  any  widow  who 
has  a  child  or  grandchild  living  able  to  support  her. 
Again  in  the  i6th  verse  we  find  an  enlargement  of  the 
restriction :  "If  a  woman  that  beheveth  hath  widows,  let 
her  relieve  them,  and  let  not  the  church  be  burdened, 
that  it  may  relieve  them  that  are  widows  indeed." 

So,  if  there  be  relatives  of  even  a  remoter  degree  who 
are  able  to  take  care  of  their  older  kindred,  then  the 
church  ought  not  to  be  burdened,  and  they  ought  to  be 
made,  if  members  of  the  church,  to  do  their  duty,  be- 
cause "whosoever  will  not  provide  for  his  own  has  denied 
the  faith  and  is  worse  than  an  infidel."  It  is  to  the 
lasting  credit  of  some  men  that  just  as  long  as  they  live 
they  exercise  deference,  patience,  and  love  toward  their 
parents. 

There  is  a  further  restriction  in  age.  How  old  must 
this  widow  be?  She  must  be  sixty  years  old  in  order 
to  be  received  as  a  regular  pensioner  of  the  church.  Of 
course,  this  does  not  mean  that  some  widows  younger 
than  that  may  not  be  in  need  of  ordinary  charity.  But 
when  we  make  out  our  pension  list  of  those  who  are  to 
be  regularly  supported  by  the  church,  we  are  as  a  rule 
to  suppose  that  women  under  that  age  can  probably  take 


82  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

care  of  themselves.  Again,  of  course,  this  would  not 
exclude  special  cases  of  ordinary  charity ;  say  a  crippled 
or  a  blind  woman,  however  young.  The  apostle  is  dis- 
cussing the  general  rule  of  charity  which  has  no  regard  to 
age  or  worthiness.  The  age  restriction  for  pensions  is 
thus  expressed  negatively :  "But  the  younger  widows 
refuse,  for  when  they  have  waxed  wanton  against  Christ, 
they  desire  to  marry."  That  implies  marrying  out  of  the 
faith,  because  soon  he  exhorts  them  to  marry.  If  these 
younger  widows  are  supported  they  will  be  idle  when 
able  to  work,  and  will  likely  go  about  from  house  to 
house,  and  having  no  employment  become  busy-bodies 
and  gossipers. 

If,  as  a  rule,  every  widow  is  to  be  supported  by  the 
church,  we  may  have,  as  pensioners,  young  women  with 
nothing  to  do,  whose  very  youth,  with  its  vitality  and 
restlessness  may  make  them  busy  in  wrong  things.  Paul 
was  a  wise  old  man,  and  he  was  an  inspired  old  man.  He 
says,  "I  desire  that  the  younger  widows  marry,  bear 
children,  rule  the  household."  When  a  woman  is  sixty 
years  old  she  is  not  apt  to  marry  again  either  in  or  out 
of  the  faith. 

He  now  defines  positively :  "She  must  be  desolate." 
Like  a  single  tree  left  of  a  grove,  all  its  comrades  cut 
down  by  the  unsparing  axe  and  this  lone  survivor  scarred 
and  riven  with  lightning  bolts,  stripped  of  boughs  and 
foliage  by  passing  storms. 

The  definition  is  yet  more  restrictive :  She  must  have  a 
good  record,  "having  been  the  wife  of  one  man,"  that  is, 
not  having  two  husbands  at  one  time.  "Well  reported  of 
for  her  good  works ;  if  she  has  brought  up  children,  if 
she  has  used  hospitality  to  strangers,  if  she  has  washed 
the  saints'  feet  [mentioned  among  the  good  works,  show- 
ing that  it  is  a  good  individual  work  and  not  a  church 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  83 

ordinance],  if  she  has  relieved  the  afflicted,  if  she  has 
diligently  followed  every  good  work." 

He  does  not  mean  that  every  woman  on  the  list  shall 
have  every  one  of  these  qualifications,  but  these  rules 
define  the  requisite  record.  Ha  woman  be  received  as  a 
pensioner  whose  life  has  been  a  reproach,  somebody  in 
the  church  will  be  sure  to  question  the  justice  of  her  title 
to  support.  Paul  is  directing  here  a  sane,  safe  way  to 
guard  the  church  from  reproach,  and  yet  allow  no  neglect 
of  duty. 

There  is  even  yet  something  to  be  considered:  What 
are  her  spiritual  habits?  "She  that  is  a  widow  indeed 
and  desolate,  and  hath  her  hope  set  on  God,  and  continu- 
eth  in  supplications  and  prayers  day  and  night."  A 
genuine  Christian,  an  old  woman  by  herself,  no  relatives, 
no  property,  but  with  her  hope  in  God,  and  devoting  the 
remnant  of  her  earthly  life  to  prayer  and  supplications. 
Nobody  will  object  to  helping  her  because  she  has  mer- 
ited the  pension,  but  she  must  be  really  desolate  and 
needy  and  worthy. 

And  again,  negatively :  "But  she  who  giveth  herself  to 
pleasure  is  dead  while  she  liveth."  There  are  many  old 
women,  who,  though  old,  devote  their  lives  to  pleasure 
and  not  to  God's  service.  Paul  says  that  sort  of  a  woman 
is  dead  while  she  lives. 

H  we  were  in  the  French  Capital  to-day,  we  might  see 
old  women  affecting  to  be  young  women,  and  acting  as 
if  they  were  about  25  years  old,  and  so  made  up  as  to 
appear  to  be  girls,  face  painted  or  enameled,  hair  fluffed 
and  curled,  outline  supplied  by  the  milliner,  altogether 
devoting  their  lives  to  social  pleasures,  going  from  one 
soiree  to  another,  from  one  reception  to  another,  living 
without  God,  or  without  a  thought  of  God.  So,  in 
Shakespeare,  Hamlet  regards  his  mother.     Holding  up 


84  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

the  ghastly  skull  of  the  jester,  Yorick,  he  says  to  his 
friend  Horatio:  "Go  and  tell  my  lady  that  though  she 
paint  an  inch  thick,  yet  to  this  favor  will  she  come  at 
last." 

While  this  fund  of  the  church  must  be  administered 
judiciously,  so  as  not  to  encourage  idleness,  not  to  include 
in  its  list  one  likely  to  bring  reproach  on  the  cause,  yet 
it  is  a  shame  to  a  church  to  neglect  its  truly  desolate, 
helpless,  and  worthy  members.  This  pension  list  of  the 
church,  whether  relating  as  we  have  just  seen  to  widows, 
or  as  we  shall  next  see  to  preachers,  must  be  distin- 
guished from  ordinary  charity.  This  is  compensation 
for  service  rendered  and  hence  must  regard  worthiness, 
while  ordinary  charity  only  regards  human  need  no  mat- 
ter what  the  reason.  This  is  like  a  government  caring 
for  worn-out  or  crippled  sailors  and  soldiers. 

Pensioning  Superannuated  Preachers 

17th  verse:  "Let  the  elders  that  rule  well  be  counted 
worthy  of  double  honor,  especially  those  who  labor  in 
the  word  and  in  the  teaching."  The  "double  honor"  re- 
ferred to  here  is  more  than  the  respect  to  be  accorded  to 
these  venerable,  worn-out  preachers.  The  Greek  word 
"time"  here  rendered  "honor"  is  the  word  used  to  express 
the  wages  of  soldiers.  That  it  has  that  meaning  here  is 
evident,  not  only  from  the  matter  under  consideration, 
awarding  a  pension  support,  but  also  from  the  pertinent 
quotations  which  follow :  "Thou  shalt  not  muzzle  the  ox 
that  treadeth  out  the  corn,"  and  "the  laborer  is  worthy 
of  his  hire." 

Our  Presbyterian  brethren  are  mistaken  in  supposing 
that  this  passage  teaches  a  distinction  between  two  dif- 
ferent offices  in  the  church,  to-wit:  teaching  elders  who 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  85 

are  preachers,  and  ruling  elders  not  preachers  who  have 
the  general  administration  of  church  affairs.  It  is  true 
there  might  be  many  elders — preachers— in  one  church, 
all  of  them  teachers,  but  only  one  of  them  the  pastor,  a 
ruler.  The  distinction  between  the  amount  of  the  pension 
accorded  by  a  particular  church,  would  be  based  on  the 
degree  of  the  service  rendered.  Many  of  them  might 
have  done  their  teaching  elsewhere.  They  may  indeed 
have  been  rulers  over  the  smaller  churches  they  served 
as  pastors.  But  their  membership  in  this  particular 
church  put  them  within  its  care.  If  they  have  been  dis- 
tinguished as  rulers  and  have  taught  that  particular 
church,  their  pension  should  be  larger. 

Churches,  if  honest,  will  fairly  co^npensate  their 
preachers  who  labor  in  word  and  in  doctrine,  devoting 
their  lives  to  the  service  of  God.  Timothy  is  there  as 
Paul's  delegate,  standing  in  the  place  of  Paul,  as  Paul 
stood  in  the  place  of  Jesus  Christ.  How  reproachful  to 
churches  when  faithful  superannuated  men  of  God  are 
not  only  shelved  with  disrespect,  but  robbed  of  their 
wages.  The  cases  are  shamefully  numerous  of  men  who, 
without  thought  of  themselves,  devote  their  lives  unself- 
ishly to  the  work  of  God,  and  then  in  old  age  are  laid 
on  the  shelf  even  when  they  want  to  work  and  are  still 
capable  of  working.  Many  churches  are  guilty,  just  here, 
to  their  shame.  A  preacher  of  that  kind  has  earned  a 
living  and  it  must  be  accorded  to  him,  not  as  charity,  but 
as  wages  for  his  labor.  A  church  that  will  grind  its 
pastor  down  to  fine  powder,  and  force  him  to  live  under 
conditions  that  will  keep  him  from  rendering  his  best 
service,  sins  against  God  and  will  be  held  to  account. 
There  are  some  "freezeout  churches"  among  the  Baptists, 
which  take  a  man  in  and  use  up  his  life,  and  when  their 
debt  to  him  for  salary  is  large  they  begin  to  find  fault 


86      THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

with  him  and  finally  rudely  send  him  off  to  get  another  to 
be  treated  the  same  way.  It  is  a  dishonorable  method  of 
paying  debts. 

I  knew  one  preacher  who  positively  refused  to  take 
charge  of  a  church  in  debt  to  its  former  pastor.  One  of 
his  questions  when  called  was  this :  "Do  you  owe  your 
former  pastor  anything?"  "Well,  you  see,  our  former 
pastor  had  faults."  "But  do  you  owe  him  anything?" 
"Yes."  "Pay  him,  and  I  will  talk  to  you."  This  preacher 
was  John  S.  Allen. 

The  next  thing  is :  "Receive  not  an  accusation  against 
an  elder,  except  at  the  mouth  of  two  or  three  witnesses." 
If  that  rule  were  followed  strictly,  many  needless  scan- 
dals and  troubles  in  churches  would  be  avoided.  It  is 
such  an  easy  thing  to  call  a  man  off  and  whisper,  "Don't 
say  anything  about  this,  but  I  want  to  tell  you  something 
about  our  pastor."  We  should  stop  the  whisperer  at 
once:  "Are  you  about  to  tell  me  something  against  the 
pastor?  If  so,  do  you  know  it  to  be  true,  or  are  you 
proposing  to  circulate  a  hearsay?  If  you  know  it  to  be 
true,  can  you  furnish  the  corroborative  testimony  of  other 
witnesses?  And  will  you  and  the  other  witnesses  go 
with  me  now  and  tell  what  you  know  to  the  pastor  him- 
self, face  to  face,  giving  him  an  opportunity  to  meet  the 
accusation?"  The  whisperer  will  be  apt  to  reply:  "Oh, 
no!  I  don't  know  anything  myself.  I  have  heard  so  and 
so."  Thus  we  not  only  silence  the  whisperer,  but  we 
save  ourselves  from  becoming  a  partaker  of  his  sin.  The 
necessity  for  this  rule,  in  all  cases,  is  more  emphasized 
in  the  case  of  a  preacher,  whose  reputation  is  a  large  part 
of  his  capital. 

I  had  a  remarkable  experience  on  this  line.  I  went  to  a 
certain  church  to  help  in  a  meeting,  and  noticed  one  man 
who  kept  praising  my  preaching  ad  nauseam,  while  others 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  87 

looked  sad  when  they  heard  him.  After  a  while  he 
came  to  me  and  wanted  to  put  me  up  against  some  mem- 
bers of  the  church,  and  especially  against  the  pastor.  I 
said,  "Look  here ;  you  don't  know  whom  you  are  talking 
to.  I  came  here  to  help,  not  to  harm  this  pastor.  I 
won't  hold  a  meeting  to  hurt  a  pastor.  If  you  have  any 
recusations  or  complaints  to  make,  and  if  you  can  bring 
two  or  three  witnesses,  let  us  go  before  the  pastor  himself 
and  then  if  necessary  before  the  church  and  fairly  inves- 
tigate this  matter  before  we  go  on  with  the  meeting." 
That  sawed  him  ofif  and  he  never  praised  my  preaching 
any  more. 

It  is  shameful  the  way  good,  God-fearing  men  are  slan- 
dered by  irresponsible  reports  against  them.  Bring  the 
accuser  to  task  and  make  him  come  out  in  the  open  and 
give  his  corroborative  evidence,  and  allow  the  accused  a 
chance  to  answer. 

Timothy  is  there  in  Ephesus,  a  great  city  with  many 
thousands  of  church  members,  and  many  preachers.  He 
is  there  in  an  apostle's  stead,  and  from  all  over  the 
country  some  people,  if  encouraged,  will  be  bringing  him 
private  word  about  some  of  the  preachers.  Paul  says, 
"Don't  receive  an  accusation  against  an  elder  except  at 
the  mouth  of  two  or  three  witnesses."  The  Mosaic  Law 
went  further:  If  a  charge  was  made  and  not  sustained, 
the  perjurer  received  the  punishment  that  the  accused 
would  have  received  if  found  guilty.  Such  a  restriction 
puts  a  brake  on  the  slanderer's  tongue.  When  we  thus 
hold  a  man  responsible  for  what  he  says  he  is  not  so 
ready  to  talk  about  people. 

The  next  thing  about  the  elder :  "Them  that  sin,  re- 
prove in  the  sight  of  all,  that  the  rest  may  also  be  in 
fear."  I  must  call  attention  to  the  original  word  here, 
which  means,  sin  continually,  habitually.    Some  preachers 


88  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

do  sin,  and  keep  on  sinning,  and  do  not  try  to  stop.  This 
is  not  like  the  case  in  the  beginning  of  the  chapter  where 
an  elderly  man  must  be  reprimanded.  In  this  case,  re- 
prove him  in  the  sight  of  all.  We  should  not  denounce 
him  privately,  but  make  our  reproof  in  the  open  church, 
as  Paul  did  Peter  at  Antioch.  We  should  speak  right 
out :  "Here  is  a  man  in  the  ministry  who  sins  and  keeps 
on  sinning,  and  there  is  no  indication  that  he  is  going  to 
stop."  Let  the  rebuke  be  sharp  and  definite.  If  the 
public  reprimand  does  not  stop  him,  withdraw  fellowship 
from  him  and  take  away  his  credentials. 

The  last  item  about  the  elder  is  found  in  the  22nd 
verse :  "Lay  hands  hastily  on  no  man,  neither  be  partakers 
of  other  men's  sins :  keep  thyself  pure."  The  last  clause 
needs  exposition.  I  heard  one  of  the  most  noted  Baptist 
preachers  in  Texas  preach  on  that  text,  "keep  thyself 
pure,"  and  he  never  touched  the  real  meaning,  though  all 
he  said  was  good. 

"Pure"  here  does  not  refer  to  chastity.  "Sincere" 
comes  nearer  the  meaning.  It  must  be  construed  strictly 
with  its  connection.  The  main  injunction  is :  "Be  not 
hasty  in  ordaining  men  to  the  ministry."  The  subordinate 
thought:  "By  hasty  ordination  you  may  become  a  par- 
taker of  the  candidate's  disqualifying  sin."  Be  sincere 
in  such  matters ;  that  is,  be  without  reproach  in  ordaining 
men. 

The  reasons  against  haste  are  set  forth  in  verses  23 
and  24.  Some  men's  sins,  particularly  impulsive  men, 
are  evident.  It  takes  no  long  time  to  know  them.  They 
advertise  themselves.  These  impulsive  sins  precede  the 
candidate.  But  all  men  are  not  alike.  Some  are  very 
secretive  in  their  sins.  The  man  passes  before  we  see  his 
sins.  We  must  particularly  watch  out  for  what  follows 
him.     It  takes  time  to  find  out  whether  such  men  are 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  89 

worthy  of  ordination.  We  should  not  look  ahead  to  their 
promises,  nor  to  the  present,  but  examine  the  back  track. 
What  follows  him?  Does  his  past  leave  a  good  taste  in 
the  mouth?  What  impression  prevails  after  the  sober 
second  thought? 

In  like  manner  also  there  are  good  works  that  are 
evident.  In  the  case  of  some  men  we  see  them  at  their 
best  when  we  first  see  them.  Others  do  not  make  a  good 
impression  at  first.  They  grow  on  us.  Their  good  works 
follow  them.  The  longer  they  stay  at  a  place,  and  the 
more  they  are  known,  the  better  they  are  liked.  Because 
of  these  distinguishing  characteristics,  do  not  lay  hands 
on  a  novice.  License  him  and  prove  him ;  allow  time  for 
character  to  develop  itself.  Mere  brilliancy  or  flashiness 
may  be  accompanied  by  instability,  lack  of  self-control. 
Wait  a  while ! 

In  ordaining  men  we  are  to  remember  that  some  sins 
advertise  themselves,  and  we  can  very  easily  know  when 
not  to  ordain  certain  men.  Suppose  he  is  known  to  be 
intemperate,  quick  to  fly  off  the  handle,  boastful  in 
speech ;  let  that  man  alone  for  a  while,  do  not  ordain  him 
off-hand.  Remember,  also,  that  some  sins  do  not  go 
before.  It  takes  time  to  show  what  they  are ;  they  follow 
after.  Wait  until  there  is  a  chance  for  the  proper  de- 
velopment of  a  man's  character  before  ordaining  him. 
He  may  be,  so  far  as  anybody  knows,  very  exemplary  in 
his  life,  and  yet  in  his  heart  he  may  cherish  deadly  sins. 
"Such  sins,"  says  the  apostle,  "will  work  out  and  show 
themselves  after  a  while."  Therefore,  do  not  be  in  a 
hurry  about  ordaining  any  man.  When  we  first  meet  a 
man  he  may  seem  to  be  all  right,  but  we  must  wait  to  see 
what  follows  after.  This  does  not  mean  to  wait  always. 
Character  expresses  itself ;  there  is  nothing  covered  but 
shall  be  revealed.     There  is  nothing  hid  but  shall  be 


90  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

brought  to  light.  If  a  man  imagines  that  he  can  continue 
indefinitely  to  sin  secretly,  he  is  mistaken.  We  may  rest 
assured  that  our  sin  will  find  us  out.  It  is  as  certain  as 
that  the  sun  shines.  I  have  been  out  in  the  woods  and 
have  seen  charcoal  burners  trying  to  smother  their  fire 
by  covering  it  up,  but  the  flames  would  break  out  if  not 
constantly  watched.  It  is  an  inexorable  law  of  God  that 
what  we  are  inside  will  crop  out  after  a  while.  Moreover, 
human  secretiveness  cannot  avail  against  God's  overruling 
providence.  On  this  point  are  to  be  found  in  Lilley's 
very  able  Commentary  on  the  Pastoral  Epistles  some 
judicious  observations  and  quotations : 

"The  great  principle  announced  is  the  constant  drift 
of  all  human  action  to  the  light  of  God's  throne.  Here 
Paul's  teaching  coincides  with  that  of  the  Lord  Jesus 
(Math.  10:26).  It  is  essentially  the  same  view  of  life 
and  providence,  though  contemplated  more  from  the 
human  standpoint,  that  the  Evangelist  John  also  takes, 
when  he  says :  'For  every  one  that  doeth  evil  hateth  the 
light,  neither  cometh  to  the  light,  lest  his  deeds  should 
be  convicted :  but  he  that  doeth  truth  cometh  to  the  light, 
that  his  deeds  may  be  made  manifest  that  they  have  been 
wrought  in  God'  (3:20-21).  In  either  case  there  is  no 
possibility  of  concealment.  The  discovery  of  human 
conduct  is  automatic  and  irresistible. 

"The  law  of  retribution  given  in  the  former  part  of 
Paul's  statement  (verse  24)  is  the  standing  theme  illus- 
trated in  tragedy.  The  Greek  tragedians,  especially 
^schylus,  excelled  in  the  skill  with  which  they  exhibited 
this  aspect  of  providence.  It  is  also  constantly  repro- 
duced in  modern  literature  in  the  most  varied  forms. 
'My  Lord  Cardinal,'  said  Anne  of  Austria  to  Richelieu, 
'God  does  not  pay  at  the  end  of  every  week,  but  at  the 
last  He  pays.'    The  German  poet.  Von  Logau,  said, 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  91 

'The  mills  of  God  grind  slowly,  but  they  grind  exceeding  small; 
Though  with  patience  He  stands  waiting,  with  exactness  grinds 
He  all.' 

As  Dora  Greenwell  pointed  out,  however,  the  same  prin- 
ciple holds  true  for  mercy  equally  with  judgment:  'Some 
of  the  good  seed  sown  in  tears  is  now  shedding  a  heav- 
enly fragrance  within  our  lives,  and  some  of  it  will 
blossom,  perhaps  bear  fruit  over  our  graves'  (Patience  of 
Hope,  p.  105). 

"The  aim  of  the  whole  utterance  is  to  quicken  in  men 
a  keener  sense  of  individual  responsibility  to  God.  They 
shall  not  be  able  to  hide  from  His  eye  in  the  multitude  at 
last :  they  should  not  attempt  to  do  so  now. 

"  'Man  lumps  his  kind  i'  the  mass :    God  singles  thence 
Unit  by  unit.     Thou   and   God  exist — 
So    think ! — for   certain  :    think   the    mass — mankind — 
Disparts,   disperses,    leaves   thyself   alone! 
Ask  thy  lone  soul  what  laws  are  plain  to  thee — 
Thee  and  no  other — stand  or  fall  by  them ! 
That  is  the  part  for  thee :    regard  all  else 
For  what  it  may  be — Time's  illusion.' 

— Ferishfah's  Fancies  (Browning)." 

"Lilley's  Commentary  on  the  Pastoral  Epistles"  is,  in 
the  main,  a  very  scholarly  and  sound  exposition  of  the 
letters  to  Timothy  and  Titus,  and  is  hereby  heartily  rec- 
ommended. 

I  add  one  other  from  Shakespeare's  "Julius  Caesar." 
Mark  Antony,  in  delivering  the  funeral  oration  over 
Caesar,  uses  this  expression: 

"The  evil  that  men  do  lives  after  them; 
The  good  is  oft  interred  with  their  bones." 

All  these  bear  upon  the  caution  to  Timothy  about 
ordaining  men  to  the  ministry.  While  we  cannot  wait 
forever,  we  should  not  lay  hands  on  any  man  hastily. 
Churches  to-day  are  committing  sins  fore  and  aft  in  hasty 


92  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

ordinations.  It  is  not  so  likely  that  there  will  be  a  sin 
committed  in  licensing  men ;  we  should  give  them  an 
opportunity  to  prove  themselves. 


QUESTIONS 

1.  To  what  one  general  theme  are  chapters  5  and  6  devoted? 

2.  State  in  order  the  particulars  of  this  discussion. 

3.  What  the  discriminating  direction  when  unofficial  church 
members  of  different  age  or  sex  offend? 

4.  How  may  the  preacher  in  charge  defeat  the  ends  of 
discipline  by  his  methods  of  administration? 

5.  In  the  paragraph  5:3-18  that  the  author  has  entitled  Pen- 
sioning Widows  and  Superannuated  Preachers,  is  the  pension- 
ing regarded  as  an  ordinary  charity  or  compensation  for  past 
fidelity? 

6.  What  mistake  do  Romanists  and  some  Anglicans  make 
as  to  these  pensioned  widows? 

7.  Where  do  we  find  the  first  N.  T.  history  on  this  point? 

8.  Give  first  the  negatives,  i.  e.,  what  widows  are  not  to  be 
put  on  this  list. 

9.  Give  the  positive  requisites. 

10.  On  the  law  for  pensioning  old  and  broken  down  preachers, 
4:17,  18,  what  mistake  do  the  Presbyterians  and  some  Baptists 
make  ? 

11.  What  the  Greek  word  here  rendered  "honor,"  what  its 
meaning,  and  what  the  contextual  proof? 

12.  How  do  some  "freeze-out"  Baptist  churches  pay  their 
pastors? 

13.  What  noted  Baptist  preacher  in  Texas  refused  to  consider 
a  call   from  a  church  in  debt  to  a  former  pastor? 

14.  What  other  wrong  is  often  done  to  a  preacher's  reputa- 
tion and  what  the  law  here  to  prevent  it? 

15.  As  the  Mosaic  Covenant  was  both  civil  and  religious 
how  did  it  afford  even  greater  protection  against  this  evil? 

16.  State  one  experience  of  the  author  on  this  line. 

17.  But  this  passage,  verse  20,  supposes  that  a  preacher  may 
sin,  what  the  meaning  of  the  word,   "sin,"   in  this  connection? 

18.  As  private  accusation  is  forbidden  in  such  case,  what  is 
the  remedy  enjoined  and  why,  and  on  what  notable  occasion  did 
Paul  himself  carry  out  the  injunction? 

19.  What  fault  of  the  churches  is  largely  responsible  for 
so  many  of  these  preacher  troubles,  and  stands  most  in  the  way 
of  pensioning  preachers  and  what  the  remedy  here  enjoined? 

20.  Why,  on  account  of  distinctions  in  sins  and  in  merits 
should  churches  avoid  haste  in  ordination? 

21.  In  the  injunction,  verse  22,  what  the  meaning  of  "Keep 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  93 

thyself  pure,"  and  why  the  necessity  of  this  particular  caution  in 
this  connection? 

22.  Develop  the  thought  in  verses  24,  25  and  show  its  perti- 
nence against  hasty  ordination? 

2^.  How  does  that  masterly  commentator,  Lilley,  on  the  Pas- 
toral Epistles,  sum  up  the  thought  and  what  each  one  of  his 
great  quotations? 

24.    What  other  quotation  does  the  author  add? 


VIII 

ADMINISTRATION    OF    INTERNAL    CHURCH 
AFFAIRS—  ( Concluded ) 

Scripture:  I  Tim.  6:1-21 

THE  former  discussion  on  these  chapters  covered  all 
of  Chapter  V  except  verses  21  and  23,  which  will 
be  grouped  with  other  matters  in  Chapter  VI, 
and  made  the  last  item  of  discussion  on  the  book. 

Our  last  chapter  closed  with  the  proof  that  hasty  ordi- 
nation by  churches,  ignoring  the  fact  that  the  sins  of 
secretive  men  are  not  evident  on  first  acquaintance  but 
crop  out  later,  and  other  disqualifications,  is  one  ground 
of  difficulty  in  securing  a  pension  sufficient  for  the 
worthier  class  of  aged  and  worn-out  ministers.  Not 
every  preacher  deserves  a  pension  when  old.  If  he  has 
been  lazy,  unstudious,  of  doubtful  moral  character,  not 
devoted,  there  is  no  reason  that  the  church  should  pension 
him.  Pension  rests  on  desert  and  meritorious  service. 
If  he  be  in  want  and  suflfering,  then  it  is  a  case  for  charity 
which  rightfy  has  no  regard  to  worthiness.  Charity,  like 
sunshine  and  rain,  outflows  alike  to  the  just  and  the 
unjust. 

Slaves  and  Masters,  6:1-2.  In  the  chapter  on  Phile- 
mon we  have  already  considered  at  length  Christianity's 
attitude  to  the  then  world-wide  institution  of  slavery,  so 
it  is  unnecessary  here  to  go  over  the  ground  again.  The 
remark  applies  here  as  well  as  there  that  rabid  fanatics 
on  the  slavery  question  never  did  endorse,  and  were  in- 

g4< 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  95 

capable  of  appreciating  the  heavenly  wisdom  of  the  New 
Testament  attitude  toward  and  method  of  dealing  with 
this  vast  and  complicated  problem. 

The  severest  tests  to  which  Christianity  has  ever  been 
subjected  have  been  in  healing  the  wounds  and  rectifying 
the  blunders  of  their  rash  handling  of  this  matter.  In- 
deed, their  misdirected  zeal  and  injudicious  remedies 
have  created  problems  more  insoluble  than  slavery  itself. 
The  shining  of  stars  affords  a  steadier  light  and  more 
healthful  influence  than  firebrands  followed  by  ashes  and 
darkness. 

Heterodox  Teachers,  6 : 3-8.  Heresy  in  theory  is  bad 
enough,  but  it  becomes  frightful  when  reduced  to  practice. 
Unquestionably  from  the  context  the  words  of  this  scath- 
ing paragraph  (6:3-8)  apply  primarily  to  the  fanatics 
dissenting  from  the  teaching  of  the  preceding  paragraph 
on  Christian  slaves  and  masters.  Let  us  consider  the 
words:  *'If  any  man  teacheth  a  different  doctrine,  and 
consenteth  not  to  sound  words,  even  the  words  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  to  the  doctrine  which  is  according 
to  Godliness ;  he  is  puffed  up,  knowing  nothing,  but 
doting  about  questionings  and  disputes  of  words,  whereof 
Cometh  envy,  strife,  railings,  evil  surmisings,  wranglings 
of  men  corrupted  in  mind  and  bereft  of  the  truth,  sup- 
posing that  Godliness  is  a  way  of  gain.  But  Godliness 
with  contentment  is  great  gain :  for  we  brought  nothing 
into  the  world,  for  neither  can  we  carry  anything  out; 
but  having  food  and  covering  we  shall  be  therewith  con- 
tent" (I  Tim.  6:3-8). 

Understand  that  the  fanatical  teaching  here  condemned 
is  not  limited  to  one  side  of  the  question  of  slavery.  The 
pro-slavery  fanatic  who  ignores  that  in  Christ  Jesus  there 
is  neither  bond  nor  free,  and  the  boundless  mercy  of  the 
gospel  to  all  slaves,  its  regenerating  and  uplifting  power, 


96  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

and  who  takes  his  position  for  the  gain  in  it,  is  on  a  par 
with  the  anti-slavery  fanatic  who,  for  political  ends,  takes 
the  other  side.  The  incentive  is  gain  in  the  case  of  both. 
Each  in  his  section  takes  the  position  that  gives  him  the 
biggest  audience,  the  popular  favor,  the  most  votes,  the 
quickest  promotion,  and  the  biggest  salaries.  When 
preachers,  for  a  like  motive  on  this  or  any  other  subject, 
depart  from  New  Testament  teachings  or  spirit,  the  result 
is  unspeakably  deplorable.  For  his  own  selfish  ends  he 
projects  not  Christ,  but  himself  in  the  lime  light  of 
publicity  and  unhealthy  sensationalism. 

Thus  "supposing  that  Godliness  is  a  way  of  gain,"  "he 
is  puffed  up,  knowing  nothing,  but  doting  about  ques- 
tionings and  disputes  of  words,  whereof  cometh  envy, 
strife,  railings,  evil  surmisings,  wranglings  of  men  cor- 
rupted in  mind  and  bereft  of  the  truth."  Ah,  me !  if  we 
could  only  remember  that  the  "kingdom  of  heaven  cometh 
not  with  observation."  The  brass  band  is  louder  than 
"the  still  small  voice."  We  need  to  hear  again  the  lesson 
of  Elijah  at  Sinai:  "What  doest  thou  here,  Elijah?" 
There  came  a  mighty  wind,  "but  Jehovah  was  not  in  the 
wind;  and  after  the  wind  an  earthquake,  but  Jehovah 
was  not  in  the  earthquake ;  and  after  the  earthquake  a 
fire,  but  Jehovah  was  not  in  the  fire ;  and  after  the  fire  a 
still  small  voice."  When  Elijah  heard  that  he  wrapped 
his  face  in  his  mantle.  The  mightiest  forces  in  nature 
and  grace  are  noiseless  and  unobtrusive.  We  hear  thun- 
der, but  not  gravitation.  Intangible  moonbeams  lift  the 
ocean  seventy  feet  high  in  the  bay  of  Fundy,  but  we 
never  hear  the  groaning  of  the  machinery.  There  is 
gain,  of  a  kind,  in  Godliness  with  contentment,  but  it  is 
seldom  financial. 

The  Man  Minded  to  be  Rich,  6 : 9-10.  Hear  the  words : 
"But  they  that  are  minded  to  be  rich  fall  into  a  tempta- 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  97 

tion  and  a  snare  and  many  foolish  and  hurtful  lusts,  such 
as  drown  men  in  destruction  and  perdition.  For  the  love 
of  money  is  a  root  of  all  kinds  of  evil ;  which  some  reach- 
ing after  have  been  led  astray  from  the  faith,  and  have 
pierced  themselves  through  with  many  sorrows." 

These  are  terrible  words,  and  true  as  terrible. 
"Minded"  means  the  dominant  desire  and  will.  Riches 
is  the  goal,  the  chief  concern.  All  other  things  are  sub- 
ordinated. Love  of  home,  wife  and  children,  love  of 
country  and  health,  happiness,  purity,  honor,  righteous- 
ness, humanity,  justice,  mercy,  and  thoughts  of  God  and 
heaven  and  hell  are  trampled  under  foot. 

No  voyage  was  ever  made  over  more  treacherous  seas ; 
no  trail  was  ever  more  thick-set  with  dangers.  The 
chances  of  ultimate  escape  are  almost  nil.  Temptations 
assail  him,  snares  entrap  him ;  lusts,  foolish  and  hurtful, 
burn  him.  It  is  the  case  of  a  swimmer  in  the  rapids 
above  the  falls,  or  skirting  the  suction  of  a  whirlpool — 
how  can  he  escape  drowning?  The  case  is  even  more 
desperate  because  the  love  of  money  is  a  root  of  all 
kinds  of  evil.  From  it  may  come  lying,  murder,  lust, 
embezzlement,  theft,  robbery,  or  any  other  evil  against 
humanity,  and  blasphemy  or  any  other  sacrilege  against 
God. 

See  the  malice  of  the  syndicate  that  invested  money  in 
the  soothsaying  damsel  at  Philippi  when  Paul  cast  out  the 
demon  that  made  her  profitable  and  "her  masters  saw 
that  the  hope  of  their  gain  was  gone"  (Acts  i6: 16-20)  ; 
and  the  malice  of  the  craftsman's  ring  at  Ephesus  when 
Paul's  preaching  against  idols  broke  up  the  business  by 
which  they  had  their  wealth  and  "brought  it  into  disre- 
pute" (Acts  19  :  23-34).  There  is  no  hate  more  intolerant 
and  murderous  than  the  hate  of  an  interrupted  evil  busi- 
ness.   In  truth  the  lowest,  meanest,  basest,  cruelist,  beast- 


98  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

liest,  ghastliest,  deadliest  form  of  idolatry  is  the  worship 
of  Mammon.  Pirates  and  highwaymen  have  been  gallant, 
brave,  chivalrous,  plying  their  business  openly  and  risking 
their  lives.  The  lover  of  money  skulks  in  his  methods, 
which  are  timid,  treacherous,  secretive,  underhand,  re- 
lentless. There  is  neither  chivalry,  mercy,  friendship, 
honor  nor  fairness  in  his  method  when  it  comes  to  a 
crucial  test.  He  is  a  web-spinning  spider,  preying  on 
the  weak  and  unwary.  His  course  is  most  hurtful  to 
himself;  the  foundation  logs  of  his  character  succumb 
to  dry  rot.  The  milk  of  human  kindness  dries  up ;  the 
soul  is  starved ;  he  pierces  himself  with  many  sorrows. 
And  when  his  shrunken  soul,  rattling  like  a  dry  pea  in  the 
pod,  is  forcibly  evicted  from  his  crumbling  body,  it  is 
hurled  naked,  hungry,  thirsty,  bankrupt,  into  an  eternity 
of  torment,  where  memory  plays  dirges,  remorse  is  an 
undying  worm,  apprehension  a  gatherer  of  eternal  storms 
to  beat  mercilessly  on  his  helpless  head  and  dried-up 
heart. 

Them  That  Are  Rich,  6:  17-19.  This  is  different  from 
"minded  to  be  rich."  There  may  be  no  fault  in  pos- 
sessing riches.  Wealth  may  come  by  inheritance,  by 
honest  industry  and  economy,  by  judicious  investments, 
or  by  diligent  attention  to  business.  Indeed,  God,  in 
love,  has  bestowed  riches  on  many  good  men.  Yea,  He 
has  set  but  one  limit  to  the  amount  of  lawful  wealth  one 
may  possess,  to-wit:  that  his  financial  prosperity  shall 
never  exceed  the  prosperity  of  his  soul  (III  John  2)  : 
"Even  as  thy  soul  prospereth."  He  is  all  right  when 
riches  increase  if  he  set  not  his  heart  upon  them. 

But  our  present  inquiry  is :  What  the  duty  of  the 
pastor  to  rich  church  members  ?  Here  it  is :  "Charge 
them  that  are  rich  in  this  present  world,  that  they  be 
not  highminded,  nor  have  their  hope  set  on  the  uncer- 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  99 

tainty  of  riches,  but  on  God,  who  giveth  us  richly  all 
things  to  enjoy ;  that  they  do  good,  that  they  be  rich  in 
good  works,  that  they  be  ready  to  distribute,  willing  to 
communicate,  laying  up  in  store  for  themselves  a  good 
foundation  against  the  time  to  come,  that  they  may  lay 
hold  of  the  life  which  is  life  indeed."  But  it  is  worthy 
of  detailed  consideration. 

6:17:  "Charge  them  that  are  rich  in  this  present  world 
that  they  be  not  highminded" ;  in  other  words,  proud  or 
haughty.  It  is  almost  impossible  for  weak  persons  to  be 
rich  and  not  be  proud  over  it ;  they  look  down  on  people 
who  are  not  rich.  Particularly  is  this  the  case  with  what 
we  call  the  "new  rich,"  people  who  have  suddenly  sprung 
into  wealth,  say  a  man  who  has  discovered  an  oil  field,  or 
patented  an  invention,  or  made  a  "corner"  on  wheat, 
cattle,  hogs,  or  cotton,  and  suddenly  becomes  a  millionaire. 
The  self-sufficiency  of  that  class  is  almost  indescribable; 
they  look  down  with  contempt  upon  people  who  have 
not  a  great  deal  of  money.  One  who  has  been  a  gentle- 
man through  several  generations — Oliver  Wendell 
Holmes  says  it  takes  three  generations  to  make  a  gentle- 
man— ignores  that  kind  of  rich  people.  The  hardest 
struggle  for  the  new  rich  is  to  get  recognition  from  the 
old  families. 

"Nor  have  their  hope  set  on  the  uncertainty  of  riches." 
It  is  difficult  for  one  of  the  new  rich  to  put  his  hope  on 
anything  else.  If  in  one  night  we  could  strip  him  of 
his  wealth,  it  would  appear  what  a  coarse,  common 
mortal  he  is.  He  has  nothing  to  recommend  him  except 
his  money.  "The  uncertainty  of  riches" :  uncertainty  is  a 
characteristic  of  wealth.  It  takes  wings  and  flies  away; 
it  is  subject  to  fire,  earthquake,  pestilence,  panic,  and  a 
multitude  of  other  contingencies.  It  is  a  pitiable  thing 
to  see  an  immortal  creature  setting  his  hope  upon  such 


100  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

an  uncertain  thing  as  wealth.  "But  on  God."  If  his  hope 
is  set  on  God,  there  is  certainty. 

Whosoever  has  God  is  rich  indeed,  if  he  has  nothing 
else  in  the  world.  Whosoever  hath  not  God  is  poor 
indeed,  if  he  has  everything  else  in  the  world. 

Let  our  hope  "be  set  on  God,  who  giveth  us  richly  all 
things  to  enjoy." 

Now  we  come  to  the  positive  part :  "That  they  do  good  ; 
that  they  be  rich  in  good  works."  If  one  wants  to  be 
rich,  here  is  the  way:  be  rich  in  good  works.  "That 
they  be  ready  to  distribute."  I  have  preached  on  this 
charge  to  the  rich  a  number  of  times,  and  have  always 
told  them  that  every  agent  out  after  money  is  solemnly 
impressed  with  the  fact  that  the  rich  man  is  not  ready : 
he  tells  us  about  certain  investments  not  yet  profitable,  or 
others  so  pending  that  he  does  not  know  how  he  stands 
yet,  and  is  not  ready  to  distribute,  nor  willing  to  com- 
municate.   We  don't  often  find  them  ready. 

A  rich  man  ought  to  have  his  affairs  in  hand  so  that 
he  is  ready  all  the  time  to  do  good  with  his  money,  laying 
up  in  store  for  himself  treasures  against  the  time  to 
come.  The  rich  man  will  lecture  the  poor  man  on  ac- 
count of  his  lack  of  provision:  "Why  don't  you  save 
up  something  for  a  rainy  day?"  When  perhaps  of  all 
men  in  the  world  he  has  laid  up  the  least  for  a  "rainy 
day." 

"That  they  may  lay  hold  of  the  life  which  is  life 
indeed."  This  life  they  are  living  is  not  life;  it  is  a 
miserable  existence.  The  thought  here  is  the  same  pre- 
sented in  Luke  i6,  where  the  rich  man,  dressed  in  purple 
and  fine  linen,  faring  sumptuously  every  day,  makes  no 
provision  for  the  future.  When  death  came  and  stripped 
him  of  everything  he  had,  he  went  over  into  another 
country  and  found  nothing  there  which  he  had  trans- 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  101 

ferred.  He  had  not  made  friends  by  the  use  of  Mam- 
mon. He  had  not  used  his  money  so  as  to  secure  any 
heavenly  reward.  A  man  who  invests  his  money  in 
preachers,  churches,  schools,  colleges,  humanity,  charity, 
it  goes  on  working  for  him,  laying  up  stores  to  his  credit 
on  the  other  side  of  the  river. 

Suppose  a  man  had  to  leave  the  United  States  and  go 
to  a  foreign  country.  His  object  would  be  to  convert  his 
property  here  into  the  property  of  that  country.  If 
his  American  money  did  not  pass  over  there,  to  exchange 
it  for  money  of  that  country;  to  exchange  his  realty 
here  for  realty  there.  The  only  thing  we  can  do  in  the 
way  of  exchanging  is  by  good  deeds,  transferring  what 
we  have  to  the  other  side.  I  am  not  discussing  salva- 
tion ;  that  is  determined  by  other  things  entirely.  I  am 
discussing  the  question  of  rewards  in  the  world  to  come. 

In  delivering  an  oration  on  the  death  of  Spurgeon  in 
the  city  of  Nashville,  I  drew  this  picture:  "Mr.  Phillips 
said  of  Napoleon,  when  he  died:  'He  is  fallen.'  I  say 
of  Spurgeon:  'He  is  risen.'"  I  described  in  fancy  the 
abundant  entrance  of  Spurgeon  into  the  heavenly  home, 
the  friends  he  had  made  by  his  unselfish  use  of  means 
here  on  earth.  Up  there  he  met  the  orphan  children 
whom  he  had  cared  for  and  sheltered,  the  aged  widows 
whom  he  had  comforted  and  cheered  in  their  dying  hours, 
the  young  preachers  he  had  taken  care  of  in  college 
and  supplied  with  libraries,  and  who  had  gone  out  on 
the  fields  as  missionaries  and  died  before  Spurgeon  died, 
who  were  all  waiting  and  watching  for  him  to  come,  and 
were  ready  to  meet  him.  That  is  the  thought  Paul  is 
trying  to  impress  upon  Timothy  with  reference  to  the 
rich. 


102  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

THE    THREE    CHARGES    TO    TIMOTHY,    5:21; 
5  :23  ;  6: 11-16;  6:20-21 

First  Charge  to  Timothy  is  the  21st  verse  of  the  5th 
chapter:  "I  charge  thee  in  the  sight  of  God  and  Jesus 
Christ  and  the  elect  angels,  that  in  conducting  the  internal 
affairs  of  the  church,  thou  observe  these  things  without 
prejudice,  doing  nothing  by  partiality."  Paul  could  make 
a  young  man  intensely  solemn  when  he  impressed  on 
him  that  he  stood  in  God's  sight,  with  the  eye  of  Jesus 
upon  him,  as  a  spectacle  to  the  angels.  "When  you  are 
conducting  the  affairs  of  the  church  do  nothing  through 
prejudice  or  partiality." 

Once  let  it  appear  that  the  pastor  is  a  partisan  in  the 
affairs  of  the  church ;  that  he  favors  certain  members 
of  the  church,  then  he  is  stripped  of  his  power  with  the 
congregation.  "Prejudice"  in  its  etymological  meaning, 
is  to  judge  before  hand.  Say  there  is  a  division  in  the 
church :  The  pastor  listens  while  A  and  B  tell  their  side 
of  the  case ;  C  and  D  he  has  not  heard.  Then  he  occu- 
pies the  seat  of  moderator  with  a  pre-judgment  in  his 
mind ;  for  some,  against  some,  and  he  greatly  damages 
himself. 

The  Second  Charge.  "Be  no  longer  a  drinker  of 
water,  but  use  a  little  wine  for  thy  stomach's  sake  and 
thine  often  infirmities."  From  this  charge  we  learn  two 
important  lessons : 

1.  That  alcoholic  stimulants  may  be  prescribed,  in 
small  quantities,  for  sick  people.  Timothy  was  a  total- 
abstinence  man.  Paul  shows  him  a  distinction  between 
a  beverage  and  a  medicine.  But  it  is  not  fair  to  Paul 
to  stretch  "a  little  wine"  as  a  medicine  to  make  it  cover 
a  barrel  of  whiskey  as  a  beverage. 

2.  The  fact  that  Paul  did  not  miraculously  heal  him- 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  103 

self  and  Timothy,  nor  resort  to  a  faith  cure,  but  did  keep 
near  him  Luke,  the  physician,  and  did  prescribe  a  medi- 
cine to  Timothy,  is  proof  positive  that  we,  as  a  rule, 
must  rely  on  ordinary  human  means  for  health  and 
healing. 

Third  Charge,  6:ii:  "Flee  these  things,  and  follow 
after  righteousness.  Godliness,  faith,  love,  patience,  and 
meekness."  Certain  things  we  must  flee  from;  all  we 
can  do  is  to  run  from  them,  e.g.,  love  of  money,  which 
we  have  just  discussed.  We  should  run  from  that  as 
we  would  run  from  a  rattlesnake.  It  is  not  cowardice, 
but  we  had  better  get  out  of  his  way  as  quick  as  possible. 
Flee  from  the  love  of  money,  covetousness,  anger.  When 
we  see  them  coming,  we  can  gain  nothing  by  meeting 
them ;  so  we  had  better  run.  But  there  are  certain  other 
things  we  must  chase:  righteousness,  Godliness,  faith, 
love,  meekness.  Whenever  we  see  their  tracks,  let  us 
follow. 

The  next  item  of  the  charge:  "Fight  the  good  fight 
of  faith."  If  the  reader  will  compare  this  exhortation 
with  what  Paul  says  of  himself  in  the  second  letter  to 
Timothy  (4:7):  "I  have  fought  a  good  fight,  I  have 
finished  the  course,  I  have  kept  the  faith,"  and  then 
with  what  he  says  in  the  letter  to  the  Philippians,  third 
chapter:  "Forgetting  the  things  which  are  behind  and 
stretching  forward  to  the  things  which  are  before ;  I 
press  onward  to  the  goal  unto  the  prize  of  the  high 
calling  of  God  in  Jesus  Christ,"  he  will  see  that  Paul 
has  exemplified  the  very  things  he  tells  Timothy  to  do. 
What  Paul  has  exemplified  in  his  life,  that  he  charges 
on  Timothy:  "The  good  fight  of  the  faith."  "The  faith" 
refers  to  all  of  the  teachings  of  the  gospel  of  Jesus 
Christ.  There  is  a  warfare,  and  the  preacher  must  make 
a  fight  for  all  of  it,  illustrating  the  truth  in  his  life, 


104  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

preaching  the  truth  with  great  earnestness  to  his  people, 
and  resisting  every  temptation  to  substitute  some  other 
thing  for  the  doctrines.  Stand  for  the  truth,  the  whole 
truth,  and  nothing  but  the  truth. 

Then,  we  must  work  out  our  sanctification ;  work  out 
what  God  works  in,  pressing  on  to  lay  hold  of  the  things 
for  which  Jesus  laid  hold  of  us,  and  then  keep  the  faith. 

Fourth  Charge.  "Timothy,  guard  that  which  is  com- 
mitted unto  thee."  The  deposit  of  faith  which  God 
placed  with  the  church,  and  in  the  preacher  through  the 
church,  is  the  most  sacred  deposit  of  either  time  or  eter- 
nity, and  whoever  trifles  with  it,  whoever  thinks  he  can 
surrender  a  part  of  it  with  impunity,  makes  the  mistake 
of  his  life. 

It  is  as  if  a  father  should  call  his  son  to  him,  open  a 
leather  case  and  say,  "My  son,  in  this  case  is  the  history 
of  the  family,  and  the  precious  jewels  of  the  family  that 
have  been  accumulated  from  400  years  back.  Your 
mother,  your  grandmother,  and  your  great  grandmother 
wore  these  jewels.  They  are  connected  with  all  the 
festivities  of  the  family  history.  I  deposit  these  precious 
heir-looms  with  you.  Guard  them,  my  son,  and  see  that 
the  one  who  comes  after  you  finds  not  one  of  the  jewels 
missing,  not  one  substituted  for  paste."  A  boy  receiving 
such  a  charge  as  that  from  a  father,  who  would  forget 
his  stewardship,  and  think  that  it  was  his  to  dispose  of 
these  jewels  for  his  own  pleasure,  swap  them  off  for 
others  to  suit  his  taste,  would  be  an  unworthy  son  of  a 
noble  family. 

How  incomparably  greater  is  this  charge  to  Timothy ! 
This  deposit  of  the  truth  all  the  wealth  of  the  world 
could  not  buy.  This  truth  all  the  wisdom  of  the  world 
could  never  have  discovered.  God  revealed  it  to  Paul, 
and  he  delivered  it  to  Timothy.     It  is  delivered  with  a 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  105 

view  of  transmission  to  those  who  come  after.  Keep 
it  inviolate,  and  transmit  it  in  its  entirety.  How  seldom 
do  we  find  a  preacher  with  that  sense  of  honor  and 
responsibility  for  the  divine  truth  deposited  with  him. 
He  is  not  at  liberty  to  preach  whatever  he  pleases.  He 
is  speaking  for  God. 

Let  me  illustrate  the  thought  in  another  way:  The 
United  States  Government  sends  an  ambassador  to  a 
foreign  country  with  special  instructions,  tells  him  what 
the  issue  is  between  the  two  countries,  and  says,  "Now 
when  you  get  over  there  and  come  up  against  those  sharp 
diplomats  of  other  nations,  you  are  to  say  what  we  tell 
you  to  say ;  you  are  not  to  vary  from  the  instructions  one 
hair's  breadth."  That  man  cannot  there  make  a  treaty 
according  to  his  idea  of  it.  An  ambassador  cannot  move 
a  step  beyond  his  instructions.  If  in  the  negotiations 
some  of  the  things  which  his  country  demands  are  found 
to  be  impracticable,  he  must  adjourn  the  meeting,  write 
home  for  instructions,  and  when  he  gets  the  new  instruc- 
tions he  can  step  forward  again. 

"Do  thou  speak  the  words  that  I  put  in  thy  mouth"  is 
what  God  always  said  to  the  prophets.  "Deliver  My 
message.  You  need  not  apologize  for  it;  it  will  take 
care  of  itself.  What  you  are  to  do  is  to  deliver  the 
message,  just  as  it  comes  to  you,  and  you  may  rest  as- 
sured that  it  will  accomplish  more  than  if  you  try  to 
fix  it  up  palatably."  God  did  not  send  us  out  as  apothe- 
caries to  put  sugar  in  His  medicine,  nor  to  coat  His 
pills.  Our  business  is  to  put  forth  the  words  of  the 
Almighty. 

In  one  of  Scott's  novels,  the  thought  is  brilliantly 
brought  out :  The  brave  Knight  of  Crevecour  goes  from 
the  Duke  of  Burgundy  with  certain  messages  to  Louis 
of  France.     When  he  steps  into  the  presence  of  the 


106  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

King  of  France  he  is  not  ashamed,  because  he  stands 
there  not  for  himself  but  for  the  Duke  of  Burgundy. 
When  he  has  been  approached  to  change  certain  things 
in  his  message,  he  takes  off  his  mailed  gauntlet,  and 
throwing  it  down  on  the  floor  says,  "That  is  what  I  am 
commissioned  to  do,  as  a  defiance  to  this  court,  if  you 
do  not  accept  the  terms  of  my  message.  I  cannot  change 
a  letter  of  it." 

That  is  the  attitude  of  the  preacher.  It  is  in  Paul's 
thought  when  he  calls  Timothy's  attention  to  the  relation 
of  his  Christian  experience:  "Lay  hold  of  life  eternal 
whereunto  thou  wast  called,  and  didst  confess  a  good 
confession  in  the  sight  of  many  witnesses."  In  other 
words,  "Go  back  to  your  conversion;  what  did  you  do 
when  you  came  before  the  church?  There  were  many 
witnesses  present,  and  you  came  out  openly  with  the 
statement  that  you  were  a  lost  sinner,  saved  by  the  grace 
of  God  by  simple  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  and  that  your 
sins  were  remitted  through  the  shedding  of  His  blood 
on  the  cross.  That  was  your  confession.  Stand  up  to 
it  now.     Don't  go  back  on  it." 

In  order  to  impress  the  more  the  idea  of  a  public  com- 
mittal, he  quotes  Christ's  confession  when  brought  before 
Pilate,  the  stern  Roman  procurator,  who  said  to  Christ, 
"Do  you  know  that  I  have  power  to  set  you  at  liberty 
or  to  take  your  life?"  Christ  said,  "You  have  no  power 
except  what  is  given  you.  I  am  a  King,  but  my  kingdom 
is  not  of  this  world."  There  Christ  witnessed  a  good 
confession  before  Pontius  Pilate. 

Whatever  may  be  the  fate  or  circumstances  of  life, 
let  the  ambassador  keep  this  thought  always  in  mind : 
That  he  stands  for  the  Savior;  in  the  parlor,  on  the 
streets,  behind  the  counter,  on  the  farm,  in  amusements, 
and  everywhere,  and  with  whomsoever,  in  the  presence 


INTERNAL  CHURCH  AFFAIRS  107 

of  whatsoever  enemies,  he  is  the  witness  to  a  good  con- 
fession.   That  is  the  charge  to  Timothy. 

I  have  read  the  lives  of  many  men.  One  of  my  favorite 
classes  of  reading  is  biography.  I  have  never  read  a 
biography  of  another  man  that  impressed  me  like  Paul's 
as  set  forth  by  himself.  I  have  never  found  anywhere 
a  man  so  conscientious,  whose  life  was  so  consecrated, 
whose  eye  was  so  single,  whose  ideal  of  duty  was  so  high. 
Always  he  stands  like  an  everlasting  rock  upon  the  truth 
of  Jesus  Christ. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  On  what  earlier  letter  have  we  considered  at  length  Chris- 
tianity's attitude  toward  the  institution  of  slavery? 

2.  What  class  of  people  never  endorsed  nor  appreciated  New 
Testament  teaching  on  this  point? 

3.  What  heavy  burden  has  their  misdirected  zeal  imposed  on 
both  Christianity  and  the  State? 

4.  Show  how  a  vicious  incentive  discounted  the  labors  of 
these  fanatics  whether  anti  or  pro-slavery  men,  and  how  the 
same  motive  in  a  preacher  on  any  other  matter  brings  deplorable 
results  to  him  and  the  community. 

5.  What  lesson  from  our  Lord  and  from  the  life  of  Elijah 
opposes  this  loud  method? 

6.  Illustrate  the  fact  that  the  mightiest  forces  are  not  noisy. 

7.  What  the  meaning  of  "Minded  to  be  rich?" 

8.  Show  how  the  love  of  money  is  the  root  of  all  kinds 
of  evil. 

9.  Illustrate  the  danger  to  the  man  himself. 

10.  Cite  two  cases  from  Acts  to  show  that  there  is  no  hate 
more  intolerant  and  murderous  than  an  interrupted  evil  business. 

11.  In  whose  favor  and  why  is  the  contrast  between  the  pirate 
and  the  miser? 

12.  Give  the  outcome  of  the  lover  of  money. 

13.  Why  the  great  difference  between  "minded  to  be  rich" 
and  "them  that  are  rich?" 

14.  What  passage  the  only  limit  to  the  amount  of  wealth 
that  may  be  lawfully  acquired? 

15.  Give  the  elements  negative  and  positive  of  the  charge 
to  the  rich. 

16.  What  the  importance  of  the  charge  to  Timothy  at  5 :2i  ? 

17.  What  two  important  lessons  may  be  learned  from  the 
charge  at  5:23? 


108  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

i8.  In  the  charge  at  6:ii  what  must  the  preacher  run  from 
and  what  must  he  chase? 

19.  Cite  proof  texts  to  show  that  Paul  himself  exemplified 
the  charge :    "Fight  the  good  fight  of  the  faith." 

20.  In  the  last  charge,  6:20,  21,  what  was  committed  to 
Timothy  and  with  what  contrasted? 

21.  When  did  Timothy  make  the  "good  confession"  and 
when  did  our  Lord? 

22.  Illustrate  from  one  of  Scott's  romances,  telling  which 
one,  the  necessity  for  an  ambassador  to  be  faithful  to  the  mes- 
sage entrusted  to  him. 


IX 


THE  INTRODUCTION,  ANALYSIS,  AND  GREET- 
ING OF  THE  LETTER  TO  TITUS 

Scripture:  All  references  and  Tit.  1:1-4 

WE  now  take  up  the  letter  to  Titus  and  commence 
with  an  historical  introduction.  The  first  thing 
we  deal  with  is  the  island  of  Crete.  Its  modern 
name  is  Candia.  It  is  about  140  miles  long,  but  very 
narrow.  It  closes  up  what  is  called  the  "Grecian  Archi- 
pelago" (a  sea  full  of  islands).  The  island  is  lifted  up 
high  out  of  the  sea  and  has  some  very  high  mountains 
on  it.  The  valleys  are  small,  but  very  rich.  It  has  always 
been  a  thickly  peopled  island  as  far  back  as  history  goes. 

Now,  the  inhabitants  of  the  island:  The  original  in- 
habitants— that  is,  if  we  go  no  further  back  than  the 
times  of  the  Greek  supremacy — were  Greeks,  mingled 
with,  perhaps  earlier  elements,  as,  Phoenicians,  Philis- 
tines, Cherethites.  There  is  a  passage  in  Virgil's  ^Eneid 
about  the  hundred  cities  of  Crete.  For  an  island  of  that 
size  to  have  a  hundred  cities,  or  even  small  towns,  implies 
a  great  population.  When  I  studied  Virgil  I  looked  up 
this  island  and  wondered  where  they  found  space  for  a 
hundred  cities. 

There  is  a  passage  in  Tacitus  that  makes  the  Jews 
descendants  of  the  Cretans.  What  plausible  argument 
could  Tacitus  have  had  for  such  a  notion?  The  Philis- 
tines and  Phoenicians,  in  Palestine,  were  naval  powers 

109 


110  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

and  early  connected  with  Crete,  and  the  Cherethites,  who 
were  associated  with  the  Philistines.  In  the  history  of 
David  we  find  that  one  of  his  body  guards  was  made  up 
of  Cherethites,  and  in  the  Septuagint,  in  two  Old  Testa- 
ment passages,  the  Cherethites  are  called  Cretans. 

It  may  have  been  these  facts  that  suggested  to  Tacitus 
that  the  Jews  were  derived  from  the  Cretans.  Tacitus 
was  a  good  historian  on  Roman  affairs,  but  he  is  wrong 
here.  This  much  is  certain :  While  the  base  of  the  inhab- 
itants were  Greeks,  Phoenicians,  and  Cherethites,  in  very 
early  days  many  Jews  settled  there.  We  find  an  account 
of  them  in  the  apocryphal  books,  in  Maccabees,  and  ex- 
tensive reference  to  them  in  Josephus,  and  in  Philo  the 
Alexandrian  Jew,  showing  how  in  the  period  of  the 
beginning  of  the  Greek  Empire  the  Jews,  who  were  great 
traders,  had  established  themselves  in  the  Island  of 
Crete. 

Now  we  come  to  the  New  Testament  bearings  upon  the 
subject.  We  want  to  ascertain  how,  possibly,  the  gospel 
was  planted  in  this  island.  In  Acts  2  where  so  many 
Jews  of  the  dispersion  and  Jewish  proselytes  came  from 
all  parts  of  the  earth  to  be  in  Jerusalem  at  the  great 
feast,  among  the  number  there  (nth  verse)  we  find  the 
Cretans  especially  mentioned.  These  Jews  of  the  dis- 
persion assembled  in  the  city  of  Jerusalem,  heard  Peter 
preach  that  day,  and  it  is  possible  that  some  of  them  were 
converted,  and  in  that  way  the  gospel  originally  came  to 
Crete. 

The  next  New  Testament  reference  is  in  Acts  27. 
Paul  is  a  prisoner  on  his  way  to  Rome,  and  he  touches 
on  the  coast  of  Asia  Minor,  is  transferred  to  a  new  ship 
bound  for  Italy,  which  stops  at  Fair  Havens,  a  harbor 
on  the  southern  coast  of  the  Island  of  Crete.  The  record 
implies  a   somewhat  lengthy   stay.     We   do   not   know 


LETTER  TO  TITUS  111 

whether  they  were  allowed  to  go  ashore  or  not.  Paul 
warned  them  to  spend  the  winter  there,  but  they,  be- 
guiled by  a  favorable  breeze,  left  Crete  and  a  typhoon 
struck  them,  blowing  them  out  of  their  course  and  wreck- 
ing them  on  the  Island  of  Malta.  These  are  two  New 
Testament  references  which  occur  before  we  come  to  the 
reference  here  in  Titus. 

The  next  thing  is  to  determine  the  character  of  the 
Greek  inhabitants.  Paul  quotes  a  poem  in  which  the 
poet,  himself  a  native  of  the  island,  describes  them  as 
liars,  beasts  and  gluttons.  At  Athens  Paul  quotes  poets, 
and  so  in  this  letter  he  quotes  a  poet.  He  was  raised 
at  Tarsus,  in  Asia  Minor,  a  great  university  city,  prob- 
ably the  greatest  in  the  world.  Alexandria  was  great, 
but  it  is  held  by  some  that  Tarsus  was  greater.  So 
Paul's  being  raised  there  gave  him  an  acquaintance  with 
the  current  literature  of  his  time. 

Just  a  few  words  on  the  position  of  Crete  in  previous 
mythology.  Mythology  has  a  great  deal  to  do  with  Crete. 
When  I  was  a  schoolboy,  about  13  years  old,  we  were 
reading  Ovid.  One  of  the  lengthiest  and  best  written 
pieces  in  the  book  of  Ovid  connects  Jupiter  and  Europa 
with  the  Island  of  Crete.  That  is  a  special  part  of  old 
Grecian  Mythology. 

It  is  not  proper  here  to  go  into  the  details  about  the 
history  of  Crete  before  Paul's  time ;  so  will  pass  over 
that  part.  But  I  will  say  this :  when  the  Romans  came  to 
the  island,  6^  b.  c,  Metellus,  a  Roman  general,  captured 
Crete  and  thence  obtained  his  surname  "Creticus,"  as 
one  Scipio,  after  his  victory  over  Hannibal  in  Africa, 
was  surnamed  "Africanus,"  and  another  one  surnamed 
"Asiaiticus."  The  Romans  were  accustomed  to  giving  a 
surname  to  their  generals  who  accomplished  anything 
great. 


112  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

In  establishing  the  province  (Rome  always  put  what 
she  captured  into  a  province)  Crete  was  united  with 
Cyrenaica,  in  the  northern  part  of  Africa.  It  is  called 
Cyrene  in  the  New  Testament.  They  were  put  together 
and  governed  by  one  proconsul. 

Just  a  word  about  the  impress  left  by  Titus  on  the  sub- 
sequent history  of  Crete:  Archaeologists  tell  of  a  church 
whose  ruins  are  yet  standing,  named  for  Titus.  It  is 
certain  that  in  later  days  the  Venetians,  who  became  a 
great  sea-power,  captured  this  island.  As  St.  Mark  is 
patron  of  Venice,  Titus  is  regarded  as  the  patron  saint 
of  Crete.  They  would  pray  thus :  "Oh,  St.  Mark,  do  thou 
help  us."    "Oh,  St.  Titus,  do  thou  help  us." 

We  now  want  to  consider  Titus  himself  before  we 
go  into  the  letter.  Here  are  the  scriptures  that  present 
the  earlier  statements  about  Titus  in  the  New  Testament : 

Titus  1 : 4  teaches  that  he  was  converted  by  Paul.  Just 
where  we  do  not  know,  possibly  at  Antioch.  We  know 
that  Titus  was  a  Greek  on  both  sides.  Timothy's  father 
was  a  Greek,  but  his  mother  was  a  Jewess.  Somewhere 
in  Paul's  work  Titus  was  led  to  Christ. 

Gal.  2: 1-3,  construed  with  Acts  15:  In  the  passage  in 
Galatians  Paul  is  referring  to  the  great  council  at  Jeru- 
salem, and  says  that  he  designedly  took  Titus,  an  uncir- 
cumcized  man,  with  him,  that  there  might  be  a  test  case. 
The  Jerusalem  Jews  demanded  that  one  must  be  a  Jew 
to  be  saved.  A  delegation  from  Antioch  went  down, 
including  Paul  and  Barnabas,  the  church  bearing  the 
expenses  of  the  expedition,  and  in  order  to  make  a  test 
case  Paul  took  Titus  along  with  him.  "Here  is  a  Gentile 
converted  to  God  under  my  ministry.  Dare  you  say  he  is 
not  saved?" 

Canon  Farrar,  who  is  much  cranky  on  Old  Testament 
criticism,  and  sometimes  on  the  Ne:w  Testament,  takes 


LETTER  TO  TITUS  113 

the  position  that  Paul  did  have  Titus  circumcized.  He 
stands  alone  on  that,  however.  But  standing  alone  does 
not  bother  him  at  all  because  he  is  so  conscious  of  being 
infallibly  right  that  he  does  not  mind  being  by  himself. 
Inasmuch  as  Timothy  had  a  Jewish  mother,  was  reared 
in  the  Jewish  faith  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  from  a  child, 
Paul  circumcized  him,  lest  his  lack  of  circumcision  would 
discount  his  influence  with  the  Jews,  but  he  would  not  do 
that  in  Titus'  case. 

II  Cor.  2 :  13,  also  7 : 6,  7,  13-15.  From  these  scriptures 
we  learn  that  when  Paul  was  at  Ephesus  the  Corinthians 
were  urging  him  to  come  over  there,  but  he  tarried  at 
Ephesus  until  Pentecost.  On  information  from  the 
household  of  Chloe  he  wrote  the  first  letter  to  the 
Corinthians,  and  sent  Titus  to  carry  it  and  to  set  these 
people  straight  on  their  immoralities,  particularly  that 
man  who  took  his  father's  wife,  and  to  work  them  up 
on  that  big  collection  for  the  poor  saints  in  Judea.  Leav- 
ing Ephesus,  Paul  went  to  Troas,  expecting  to  meet  Titus 
there  bringing  the  report  of  the  effect  of  his  first  letter 
to  the  Corinthians.  Titus  did  not  meet  him,  and  he  was 
greatly  distressed ;  although  he  was  having  a  great  meet- 
ing he  quit  and  went  over  into  Macedonia. 

The  next  scriptures  are  II  Cor.  8:6;  12:18,  23.  These 
scriptures  show  that  Titus  joined  him  in  Macedonia,  and 
brought  a  report  from  Corinth,  and  that  Paul  sent  Titus 
back  to  complete  the  work  he  had  so  magnificently  begun, 
sending  with  him  Trophimus  and  Tychicus. 

Titus  1:5:  On  the  missionary  tour  after  Paul's  escape 
from  the  Roman  imprisonment,  he  came  to  this  Island 
of  Crete,  stops  a  while,  and  finding  great  disorder  in  the 
churches  here,  leaves  Titus  to  set  things  in  order. 

Titus  3:12:  In  this  passage  Paul  writes  to  Titus  to 
join  him  in  Nicopolis,  where  he  expects  to  winter.    He 


114  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

tells  him  to  join  him  there  when  a  successor  comes;  that 
he  will  send  Artemas  or  Tychicus  to  take  his  place. 

Titus  3:13:  Titus  is  still  in  Crete.  Paul  sends  the 
letter  by  Zenas  and  Apollos,  and  charges  Titus  to  take 
charge  of  these  two  brethren  and  help  them  forward  on 
their  way. 

II  Timothy  4:10:  Paul  is  now  a  prisoner  a  second 
time  in  Rome,  and  is  writing  to  Timothy.  He  says  that 
Titus  had  gone  to  Dalmatia,  which  is  not  very  far  from 
Nicopolis,  where  he  was  to  winter  wnth  Paul. 

The  last  scriptures  to  consider  as  bringing  out  the 
character  of  Titus,  are  II  Cor.  'j'.'j,  13,  15;  8:23.  Let 
us  picture  in  our  minds  the  kind  of  a  man  Titus  was. 
We  know  that  he  succeeded  magnificently  in  his  work, 
but  this  passage  shows  the  character  of  the  man: 

"God  comforted  us  by  the  coming  of  Titus ;  and  not 
by  his  coming  only,  but  also  by  the  comfort  wherewith 
he  was  comforted  in  you,  while  he  told  us  of  your  long- 
ing, your  mourning,  your  zeal  for  me,  that  I  rejoice  yet 
more.  Therefore,  we  have  been  comforted,  and  in  our 
comfort  we  joyed  the  more  exceedingly  for  the  joy  of 
Titus,  because  his  spirit  hath  been  refreshed  by  you  all." 
That  indicates  his  appreciative  nature ;  when  he  brought 
them  comfort  and  saw  how  glad  they  were,  he  became 
glad. 

"But  this  affection  is  more  abundantly  toward  you 
while  he  remembereth  the  obedience  of  you  all,  how  with 
fear  and  trembling  ye  received  him."  That  brings  out 
his  love  for  these  people  among  whom  he  labored. 

"Whether  any  inquire  about  Titus,  he  is  my  partner 
and  my  fellow-worker  to  you-ward."  From  these  scrip- 
tures we  get  an  idea  of  the  inside  man ;  the  tenderness, 
sympathy  and  love  of  his  nature.  Titus  is  not  mentioned 
in  the  book  of  Acts  at  all. 


LETTER  TO  TITUS  115 

Analysis 

We  now  come  to  the  outline  of  the  book ;  I  am  giving 
a  very  critical  outline,  chapter  by  chapter: 

Chapter  One: 

1.  Elaborate  Greeting,  i :  1-4. 

2.  Occasion  of  the  letter,  i :  5. 

3.  Qualifications  of  elders  to  be  ordained,  i  :6-io. 

4.  Reasons  for  such  high  qualifications,  1:11-16. 

Chapter  Two: 

5.  Directions  concerning  practical  piety  in  social  life, 

2: 1-IO. 

6.  High  doctrinal  reasons  therefor  in  the  teaching  of 

grace,  2: 11-14. 

7.  How  Titus  must  carry  out  the  directions,  2:15. 

Chapter  Three: 

8.  Directions    concerning    civil    life    and    character, 

3:1-2. 

9.  High  doctrinal  reasons  therefor  in  the  example  of 

the  salvation  of  the  saints,  3 : 3-7. 

10.  A  faithful  saying  in  point,  and  the  value  of  good 

works,  3 : 8,  14. 

11.  What  to  shun,  3:9. 

12.  How  to  treat  the  factious,  3:  lo-ii. 

13.  Directions  to  Titus  when  a  successor  arrives,  3  :  12. 

14.  Directions  to  forward  with  help,  Zenas  and  Apol- 

los,  3:13. 

15.  Farewell  salutation  and  benediction,  3: 15. 

That  is  strictly  a  critical  outline.  It  leaves  out  nothing 
in  the  letter,  is  orderly  arranged  chapter  by  chapter,  and 
brings  out  each  thought.  With  that  the  reader  will  more 
understandingly  study  Titus. 


116  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

I  will  consider  the  first  item  of  the  analysis,  the  elab- 
orate greeting,  1:1-4.  In  the  first  place  Paul  desires  to 
have  the  men  to  whom  he  writes  to  understand  that  he  is 
writing  with  the  fulness  of  authority,  representing  God, 
representing  Jesus  Christ,  representing  the  faith  of  God's 
elect,  and  that  he  is  writing  concerning  the  true  knowledge 
of  the  faith,  which  is  according  to  Godliness. 

He  makes  the  key  note  of  the  letter,  practical  religion, 
or  Godliness  in  life:  "According  to  Godliness,  in  hope 
of  eternal  life,  which  God,  who  cannot  lie,  promised  be- 
fore time  eternal ;  but  in  his  own  seasons  manifested  His 
word  in  the  message,  wherewith  I  was  intrusted  accord- 
ing to  the  commandment  of  God  our  Savior."  Marking 
himself  out  as  the  one  who  is  to  speak,  in  every  direction 
he  buttresses  his  authority  to  speak,  and  especially  on 
the  topic  to  be  discussed  in  this  letter,  practical  holiness, 
practical  religion  according  to  the  truth,  the  divine  truth. 

He  will  demonstrate  in  the  letter  how  doctrine  is  the 
basis  of  morality.  He  will  use  great  doctrines  to  enforce 
morality.  He  inculcates  every  one  of  these  thoughts  as 
special  and  precious.  When  he  writes  to  Titus  he  makes 
the  following  points :  "I  led  you  to  Christ ;  you  are  my 
true  child,  but  it  is  in  a  common  faith."  Just  as  Jude 
says,  "a  common  salvation,"  or  as  Luke  says,  "the  things 
which  are  commonly  believed  among  us." 

Conversion  is  always  according  to  the  common  faith. 
Certain  impressions  of  men  may  be  different,  but  one 
was  not  converted  to  one  kind  of  faith  and  another  to 
another  kind.  From  the  days  of  the  first  converts  under 
the  gospel  to  the  present  time,  every  conversion  is  unto 
truth  which  is  common.  Whether  manifested  in  some 
cases  as  in  others  or  not,  the  normal  conversion  has  these 
elements  in  it:  Under  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  a 
man  sees  himself  to  be  a  sinner  in  the  sight  of  God.    He 


LETTER  TO  TITUS  117 

is  sorry  for  his  sins  and  changes  his  mind  toward  God 
on  account  of  sin.  There  was  a  burden  resting  on  him 
because  of  sin.  He  turned  by  faith  to  the  Savior  for 
salvation  from  that  sin. 

These  are  the  normal  elements  of  conversion.  Some 
people  may  not  experience  these  things  so  as  to  be  able 
to  separate  them  item  by  item.  I  once  received  a  letter 
from  a  man  who  heard  some  great  teacher  in  a  Bible 
rally.  He  wrote :  "Great  teachers  here  are  saying  that 
there  is  no  time  element  between  repentance  and  faith; 
that  they  are  simultaneous.  Is  this  true }"  I  wrote  back 
that  the  two  were  distinct,  repentance  one  thing  and 
faith  another  thing;  that  they  have  different  objects — 
repentance  is  toward  God,  and  faith  is  toward  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ;  that  they  are  represented  always  in  a  cer- 
tain order:  "repentance  and  faith;"  that  while  in  some 
cases  a  conversion  takes  place  in  so  short  a  time  that  a 
man  is  not  able  to  separate  them,  the  steps  were  there 
just  the  same;  that  there  WAS  a  difference  in  time,  even 
when  one  could  not  appreciate  it. 

In  some  cases  conviction  manifests  itself  a  good  while 
before  the  man  reaches  repentance,  and  sometimes  a  man 
is  penitent  a  long  time  before  a  clear  view  of  the  Savior 
is  presented  to  him.  I  know  a  case  where  repentance 
lasted  a  year  before  faith  came. 


QUESTIONS 

1.  Give  an  account  of  the  Island  of  Crete:  (i)  Where, 
what  the  dimensions  and  what  the  topography?  (2)  Early 
inhabitants.  (3)  Density  of  population  including  citation  from 
Virgil. 

2.  What  the  strange  statement  of  Tacitus  as  to  national  origin 
of  Jews  and  the  probable  ground  of  the  statement? 

3.  What  the  strange  account  in  Maccabees  of  the  common 
origin  of  Jews  and  Spartans? 


118  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

4.  Give  account  of  Jews  settling  in  the  Island  and  the  author- 
ities. 

5.  What  the  New  Testament  references  prior  to  this  letter  to 
the  Island  and  its  Jewish  population  and  how  may  the  Gospel 
have  been  planted  there? 

6.  What  the  character  of  the  population  according  to  one  of 
its  poets  quoted  by  Paul? 

7.  What  noted  myth  concerning  Crete? 

8.  Who  conquered  Crete  for  the  Romans,  what  surname  did 
he  receive  and  with  what  other  section  of  country  was  it  con- 
stituted a  Roman  province? 

9.  Later  what  Mediterranean  Sea  power  conquered  the 
Island? 

10.  To  what  nation  does  it  now  belong? 

11.  What  archeological  testimony  to  Titus? 

12.  Give  connected  New  Testament  history  of  Titus  and  the 
impression  of  his  character  and  ability  conveyed. 

13.  Give  the  analysis  of  the  letter. 

14.  "What  the  key-note  of  the  letter? 

15.  What  the  two   great   doctrinal    statements   in   the   letter? 

16.  What  relation  does  the  letter  establish  between  doctrine 
and  morals,  or  practical   religion? 

17.  What  the  office  of  Titus,  and  what  his  special  authority? 


X 

AN  EXPOSITION  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  TITUS 

Scriptures:  Tit.  1:5-3:15 

AT  THE  close  of  our  discussion  on  the  historical 
introduction  to  the  letter  to  Titus,  I  gave  an 
elaborate  outline  of  the  letter,  so  inclusive  that  it 
practically  becomes  an  exegesis  of  the  letter.  Moreover, 
we  need  now  to  consider  but  three  points  in  the  letter, 
because  in  the  first  letter  to  Timothy  we  have  gone  over 
much  of  the  ground  relating  to  preachers,  their  ordina- 
tion, and  all  the  parts  relating  to  their  social  life. 

The  historical  introduction  also  expounded  the  elab- 
orate salutation,  so  that  this  section  really  commences 
at  the  5th  verse:  "For  this  cause  I  left  thee  in  Crete, 
that  thou  shouldst  set  in  order  the  things  that  are  want- 
ing, and  appoint  elders  in  every  city,  as  I  gave  thee 
charge." 

"Elders  in  every  city" :  there  can  be  no  efficient  develop- 
ment of  church  life  without  pastors.  The  pastors  teach 
the  word  and  rule  according  to  the  word ;  they  oversee 
the  work  of  the  church ;  they  shepherd  the  flock,  feeding, 
guarding  and  healing.  Upon  the  entrance  qualification 
into  the  office  of  elder,  we  need  to  emphasize  one  point 
additional  to  those  considered  in  the  first  letter  to  Tim- 
othy. It  has  been  rightly  said  that  the  entrance  spiritual 
qualification  to  church  membership  should  be  the  simple, 

119 


120  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

trustful  acceptance  of  Christ  as  Savior.  It  is  not  neces- 
sary for  one  to  be  a  theologian  in  order  to  unite  with 
the  church.  We  receive  babes  in  Christ  into  the 
church. 

But  it  is  not  true  that  in  ordaining  elders  we  should 
limit  the  scope  of  the  examination  to  entrance  qualifica- 
tions into  the  church.  Let  us  commence  with  the  9th 
verse.  He  is  here  cautioning  Titus  about  whom  to  or- 
dain, that  the  candidate  to  the  ministry  must  "hold  to 
the  faithful  word,  which  is  according  to  the  teaching,  that 
he  may  be  able  both  to  exhort  in  the  sound  doctrine  and 
convict  the  gainsayers." 

Then  follows  the  reasons  for  such  high  qualifications 
on  entrance  into  the  ministry.  He  shows  the  presence  of 
"unruly  men,  vain  talkers,  and  deceivers,  especially  they 
of  the  circumcision,  whose  mouths  must  be  stopped ;  men 
who  overthrow  whole  houses,  teaching  things  which  they 
ought  not  for  filthy  lucre's  sake."  The  fact  that  there 
are  capable  opponents  to  the  Christian  religion,  some- 
times exceedingly  plausible,  who  can  overturn  the  faith 
of  whole  households,  makes  it  necessary  that  the  man  to 
be  ordained  to  the  ministry  must  understand  the  teach- 
ing, the  deposit  of  faith,  as  enunciated  in  the  New 
Testament,  and  summaries  of  which  are  given  repeatedly 
by  the  Apostle  Paul.  We  had  this  thought  in  part  in  the 
first  letter  to  Timothy,  where  he  says,  "Lay  hands  sud- 
denly on  no  man ;  not  on  a  novice." 

In  order  to  do  the  work  of  a  preacher,  and  especially 
that  of  a  pastor  of  a  church,  one  must  be  able  to  lead 
babes  in  Christ  to  mature  Christian  knowledge.  That  is 
what  he  is  for,  and  he  must  be  able  to  meet  the  gain- 
sayers, those  who  stand  out  against  the  doctrine.  Where 
the  pastor  is  unable  to  do  either  one  or  the  other,  his 
church  in  all  probability  will  suffer  severely,  not  only  in 


BOOK  OF  TITUS  121 

lack  of  development,  but  also  by  in-roacls  of  the  opposi- 
tion. That  this  point  may  be  clear  let  the  reader  study 
this  passage  from  Ephesians: 

"And  He  gave  some  to  be  apostles,  and  some  prophets, 
and  some  evangelists,  and  some  pastors  and  teachers,  for 
the  perfecting  of  the  saints  unto  the  work  of  minister- 
ing, unto  the  building  up  of  the  body  of  Christ:  till  we 
all  attain  unto  the  unity  of  the  faith,  and  of  the  knowledge 
of  the  Son  of  God,  unto  a  full  grown  man,  unto  the 
measure  of  the  stature  of  the  fulness  of  Christ:  that  we 
may  be  no  longer  children  tossed  to  and  fro  and  carried 
about  with  every  wind  of  doctrine,  by  the  sleight  of 
men,  in  craftiness,  after  the  wiles  of  error;  but  speaking 
truth  in  love,  may  grow  up  in  all  things  into  Him,  who 
is  the  head,  even  Christ;  from  whom  all  the  body  fitly 
framed  and  knit  together  through  that  which  every  joint 
supplieth  according  to  the  working  in  due  measure  of 
each  several  part,  maketh  the  increase  of  the  body  unto 
the  building  up  of  itself  in  love." 

The  key  note  of  the  letter  to  Titus  is  the  practical  re- 
ligion coming  from  the  acceptance  of  sound  doctrine. 
Paul  never  conceived  of  an  empty  Christian  faith.  He 
never  dissociated  morality  from  doctrine,  but  always 
predicated  morality  upon  doctrine.  Doctrine  is  the  foun- 
tain and  morality  is  the  stream. 

While  standing  as  he  did  with  such  earnestness  for  the 
truth  which  he  had  received  from  Christ,  and  while  ex- 
horting them  to  keep  this  truth  just  as  he  gave  it  to  them, 
to  preserve  it  inviolate,  to  transmit  it  unimpaired,  he 
always  insisted  that  the  evidence  of  one's  acceptance 
of  this  truth  was  a  sound  religious  life.  This  letter, 
perhaps  more  than  any  other,  stresses  that  point. 
True,  in  every  letter  after  he  had  stated  his  doctrine, 
there   is  an   exhortation   to   practical   morality,   but   in 


122  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

this  letter  the  main  thought  is  in  the  direction  of  prac- 
tical holiness,  and  the  doctrines  introduced  are  for 
illustration. 

With  this  thought  before  us,  we  consider  the  first 
great  doctrinal  statement,  which  is  the  second  chapter. 
Throughout  that  chapter  he  defines  the  things  becoming 
sound  doctrine:  "That  the  aged  be  temperate,  grave, 
sober-minded,  sound  in  faith,  in  love,  in  patience,"  how 
the  aged  women,  young  women,  and  young  men  should 
do. 

But  when  he  unveils  the  fountain  from  which  the 
stream  of  moral  life  flows,  and  which  this  good  life 
adorns,  we  find  this  doctrinal  origin :  "For  the  grace  of 
God  hath  appeared,  bringing  salvation  to  all  men,  in- 
structing us  to  the  intent  that,  denying  ungodliness  and 
worldly  lusts,  we  should  live  soberly  and  righteously  and 
godly  in  this  present  world."  He  affirms  that  this  is  the 
teaching  of  salvation  by  grace.  There  is  no  antinomian 
fruit  in  the  doctrine  of  salvation  by  grace. 

From  the  lips  of  every  expounder  of  salvation  by 
grace  in  the  New  Testament  comes  the  one  teaching 
that  sound  doctrine  concerning  the  world  to  come  leads 
us  to  a  sound  life  in  this  present  world;  that  here  on 
earth  and  in  time,  we  should  live  soberly,  righteously, 
godly,  and  in  denial  of  worldly  lusts.  It  is  a  little  diffi- 
cult, in  view  of  the  clear  statement  upon  this  subject,  to 
understand  how  antinomianism  ever  originated.  Cer- 
tainly it  is  not  warranted  in  the  Bible.  We  may  put  it 
down  as  a  fundamental  of  Christianity,  that  where  there 
is  anything  of  Christianity  in  the  heart,  it  will  make  its 
subjects  better,  here  and  now.  It  will  make  a  husband  a 
better  husband,  a  wife  a  better  wife,  a  child  a  better 
child,  a  citizen  a  better  citizen,  a  slave  a  better  slave. 
Many  times  in  my  life  I  have  felt  called  upon  to  preach 


BOOK  OF  TITUS  123 

from  this  text:  What  the  grace  of  God  which  bringeth 
salvation  teaches. 

The  second  thing  that  it  teaches  us  is  to  "look  for  the 
blessed  hope  and  appearing  of  the  glory  of  the  great  God 
and  our  Savior  Jesus  Christ."  Wherever  there  is  a  gen- 
uine acceptance  of  Jesus  as  a  present  Savior  there  is  an 
attitude  of  expectation  toward  the  second  advent.  We 
cannot  have  sound  faith  in  the  historical  Christ  without 
having  an  expectant  hope  of  the  coming  Christ.  Baptist 
churches  need  to  have  that  ground  into  them.  Whenever 
we  find  that  a  considerable  part  of  our  life  is  elapsing 
without  thought  of  the  final  coming  of  our  Lord,  then 
there  is  something  wrong  in  us. 

As  the  first  coming  was  the  highest  mountain  peak 
which  loomed  up  on  the  Old  Testament  horizon,  so  is 
the  second  advent  the  highest  mountain  peak  in  our 
future,  and  we  should  never  lose  sight  of  it. 

Here  the  question  arises :  "How  do  you  maintain 
such  an  attitude  toward  the  final  coming  of  our  Lord, 
with  your  post-millenial  views?"  It  is  easy  to  answer 
that  question. 

1.  Having  post-millenial  views,  I  have  no  trouble  with 
the  universality  in  preaching  required  in  "bringing  salva- 
tion to  all  men,"  since  our  only  hope  of  saving  men  is 
before  the  final  advent,  expecting  none  to  be  saved  after 
that  advent;  whereas  the  pre-millennial  view  expects  to 
save  only  an  ever  lessening  few  before  that  advent,  and 
looks  to  post-advent  times  for  saving  the  bulk  of  those 
to  be  redeemed. 

2.  To  any  one  individual  life  it  is  only  a  little  time 
until  the  Lord  comes.  As  soon  as  we  come  to  death  we 
pass  out  of  time  into  eternity,  where  there  is  no  time,  no 
measuring  of  duration.  So  the  only  period  in  which  my 
looking  for  the  Lord  can  be  beneficial  to  me  is  in  my 


124  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

lifetime  here  upon  earth.  But  to  the  race  of  man,  the 
succession  of  individuals,  it  may  be  a  very  long  time 
until  the  second  coming  of  Christ.  All  through  the 
New  Testament  men  are  addressed  not  so  much  with 
reference  to  the  lapse  which  must  pass  in  the  history 
of  the  race  before  the  final  advent,  as  to  the  individual's 
brief  stay  on  earth. 

To  illustrate :  Peter  positively  knew  that  Christ  would 
not  come  before  he  died,  because  Christ  had  told  him 
just  how  he  was  to  die.  He  himself  makes  reference  to 
that.  And  yet  Peter  was  marvelously  stirred  in  his  heart 
with  the  thought  of  the  final  coming  of  the  Lord.  He 
knew  that  it  would  not  be  in  his  time,  but  he  knew  he 
was  influenced  by  the  thought  while  he  lived.  In  the 
great  prophecy  of  our  Lord,  each  steward  in  his  day, 
whether  that  day  be  remote  from  the  second  advent,  or 
near  to  it,  is  warned  not  to  say  in  his  heart:  "My  Lord 
delayeth  His  coming,"  that  in  such  a  time  as  he  thinks 
not  the  Lord  will  come  and  he  will  be  cut  down  and  his 
portion  appointed  with  hypocrites.  Very  much  in  point  is 
a  passage  in  John's  gospel :  "I  go  to  prepare  a  place  for 
you,  and  if  I  go  I  will  come  again  to  receive  you  unto 
myself."  This  was  meant  for  the  men  addressed  and 
men  ages  remote  from  the  final  advent. 

It  is  unquestionable  that  there  is  a  sense  in  which  the 
advent  of  the  Lord  comes  to  the  individual.  He  meets 
every  one  at  the  depot  of  death.  It  is  not  at  all  peculiar 
to  post-millennial  people  to  neglect  the  thought  of  the 
second  advent  of  our  Lord.  While  I  believe  that  it  is 
absolutely  impossible  for  that  advent  to  come  in  my  life 
time,  and  base  my  belief  upon  the  clear  teachings  of 
preceding  things — things  which  must  come  to  pass  before 
the  final  coming — yet  the  influence  of  the  second  advent 
has  been  a  tremendous  power  over  my  life.     I  have 


BOOK  OF  TITUS  125 

preached  from  it  oftener  than  from  any  other  one  theme 
in  the  Bible  except  the  Cross  of  Christ. 

To  resume  our  discussion :  Paul  says  that  the  grace 
of  God  which  bringeth  salvation  teaches  these  things : 
I — That  in  this  present  world  we  must  live  soberly, 
righteously,  and  godly ;  2 — That  the  heart  must  be  turned 
toward  the  final  coming  of  the  Lord.  These  two  lessons, 
and  they  are  both  good  lessons,  are  reinforced  by  the 
following : 

"God  gave  himself  for  us  that  He  might  redeem  us 
from  all  iniquity,  and  purify  unto  himself  a  people  for 
His  own  possession,  zealous  of  good  works."  So  the 
teaching  is  buttressed  by  the  purpose  which  was  in  the 
mind  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  You  recall  how  that 
point  was  emphasized  when  we  recently  passed  over 
Ephesians,  where  it  said  that  Christ  loved  the  church 
and  gave  himself  for  it,  that  He  might  sanctify  it,  hav- 
ing cleansed  it  by  the  washing  of  water  with  the  word, 
that  He  might  present  the  church  to  himself  a  glorious 
church  not  having  spot  or  wrinkle,  or  any  such  thing,  but 
that  it  should  be  holy  and  without  blemish. 

It  was  once  common  for  preachers,  resting  on  the 
King  James  version,  to  insist  that  God's  people  must  be 
peculiar,  i.  e.,  odd.  But  that  is  not  the  meaning  of  the 
word.  He  gave  himself  for  His  people,  having  in  view 
their  complete  holiness,  and  that  they  were  to  be  a  people 
for  His  own  possession,  i.  e.,  peculiar  to  Him  and  zealous 
of  good  works.  If  one  finds  himself  without  that  zeal 
for  good  works,  he  may  question  the  Lord's  title  to  him. 
First  make  a  tree  good,  then  its  fruit  will  be  good. 

The  other  doctrinal  passage  is  much  more  difficult. 
Indeed  to  expound  it  satisfactorily  to  myself  is  to  dis- 
sent from  most  Christian  scholars.  I  have  tried  hard  to 
fall  in  with  their  views,  but  cannot  do  it. 


126  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

3:3:  "For  we  also  once  were  foolish,  disobedient, 
deceived,  serving  divers  lusts  and  pleasures,  living  in 
malice  and  envy,  hateful,  hating  one  another,  but  when 
the  kindness  of  God,  our  Savior,  and  His  love  toward 
man  appeared,  not  by  works  done  in  righteousness  which 
we  did  ourselves,  but  according  to  His  mercy  he  saved 
us,  through  the  washing  of  regeneration  and  renewing  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  which  He  poured  out  upon  us  richly, 
through  Jesus  Christ  our  Savior ;  that  being  justified 
by  His  grace,  we  might  be  made  heirs  according  to  the 
hope  of  eternal  life." 

The  only  difficulty  in  the  passage  is  that  relating  to 
the  washing  of  regeneration.  Most  commentators  find 
here  an  allusion  to  baptism.  To  my  own  mind  there  is 
no  allusion  whatever  to  baptism.  To  justify  my  dissent 
from  the  majority  of  commentators,  I  submit  an  exegesis 
of  the  passage,  and  then  leave  the  reader  to  agree  with 
the  author  or  to  follow  some  other  exegesis,  as  he 
pleases. 

The  difficult  passage  is  one  of  a  group,  all  based  on 
Old  Testament  imagery,  and  referring  exclusively  to  the 
divine  side  of  salvation,  and  not  at  all  to  our  responses 
to  divine  commands.  Neither  in  this,  nor  any  passage 
of  the  group,  is  anything  that  we  do  referred  to  or  con- 
sidered; neither  contrition,  repentance,  faith,  baptism, 
nor  anything  else. 

This  passage  with  its  true  parallels,  is  sharply  con- 
trasted with  another  group  which  does  set  forth  what 
we  do  in  response  to  divine  commands,  e.  g.,  Mark  16 :  16 : 
"He  that  believeth  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved."  That 
is  something  we  do.  We  believe  and  we  are  baptized. 
Acts  2:36:  "Repent  ye  and  be  baptized  every  one  of 
you  unto  the  remission  of  sins."  Here  again  is  some- 
thing we  do.    We  repent  and  are  baptized.    Acts  22  :  16 : 


BOOK  OF  TITUS  127 

"Arise  and  be  baptized  and  wash  away  thy  sins."  Here 
is  an  injunction  to  human  duty.  Paul  is  commanded  to 
be  baptized.  I  Peter  3:21-22:  "Eight  souls  were  saved 
through  water ;  which  also  after  a  true  likeness  doth 
now  save  you,  even  baptism,  not  the  putting  away  of 
the  filth  of  the  flesh,"  etc.  Here  again  is  a  passage 
that  tells  us  what  baptism  does  and  what  it  does  not. 

All  of  this  group  of  passages  must  be  construed  to- 
gether, whatever  the  interpretation.  They  all  set  forth 
something  that  we  do,  and  all  discuss  the  human  re- 
sponses to  divine  commands ;  but  this  expression,  "the 
washing  of  regeneration,"  in  the  Titus  passage  is  disso- 
ciated particularly  from  anything  we  do,  expressly  say- 
ing, "Not  by  works  done  in  righteousness,  which  we  did 
ourselves,  but  according  to  His  mercy  He  saved  us, 
through  the  washing  of  regeneration  and  renewing  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  which  He  poured  out  upon  us  richly 
through  Christ  Jesus  our  Savior." 

Unlike  Galatians  and  Romans,  this  passage  does  not 
even  consider  salvation  in  its  legal  aspects — justification, 
redemption,  adoption — i.  e.,  the  salvation  done  outside  of 
us  and  for  us,  but  confines  itself  wholly  to  the  salvation 
in  us,  wrought  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  "washing"  is  in 
us  as  much  as  the  "renewing,"  and  both  by  the  Holy 
Spirit. 

The  divine  side  of  salvation  alone  is  considered  and 
the  washing  of  regeneration  and  the  renewing  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  refer  to  the  Spirit's  work  in  contradistinction 
to  the  Father's  work  or  to  the  Son's  work  in  salvation, 
and  especially  to  anything  we  do.  That  baptism  in  water 
is  a  work  of  righteousness  done  by  us  is  evident  from 
the  statement  from  our  Lord  to  John:  "Suffer  it  to  be 
so  now,  for  thus  it  becometh  us  to  fulfill  all  righteous- 
ness."   But  this  passage  says  that  the  salvation  here  dis- 


128  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

cussed  is  according  to  mercy,  not  by  works  done  in 
righteousness,  which  we  did  ourselves. 

Now  the  kindred  passages  with  which  this  passage 
must  be  associated  in  exegesis  are  to  be  found  in  John 
3  : 2-8  and  Ephesians  5  :  25-27.  In  these  two  passages,  as 
in  Titus,  the  divine  side  of  salvation  is  considered.  Christ 
said  to  Nicodemus,  "Except  a  man  be  born  from  above 
he  cannot  see  the  kingdom  of  God."  Again  He  said, 
expanding  the  same  statement,  "Except  a  man  be  born 
of  water  and  Spirit,  he  cannot  enter  the  kingdom  of 
heaven." 

Note  particularly  the  following:  Christ  and  Nico- 
demus are  discussing  two  births,  one  natural,  the  other 
spiritual.  "That  which  is  born  of  flesh  is  flesh,  that 
which  is  born  of  Spirit  is  spirit."  He  is  not  discussing 
three  births — one  natural,  one  figurative,  and  one  Spirit- 
ual. 

Second,  His  teaching  concerning  the  necessity  of  this 
new  birth  was  clearly  taught  in  the  Old  Testament,  for 
He  rebukes  Nicodemus,  he  being  a  teacher  in  Israel,  for 
not  understanding  the  new  birth.  If  there  had  been  any 
reference  to  baptism  in  the  word,  "water,"  Nicodemus, 
as  a  teacher  of  the  Old  Testament,  could  not  have  been 
rebuked,  because  the  Old  Testament  knew  nothing  of 
this  New  Testament  ordinance  of  baptism.  So  that  what- 
ever "born  of  water  and  Spirit"  means,  it  is  something 
unequivocally  taught  in  the  Old  Testament. 

Where,  then,  in  the  Old  Testament  is  it  so  plainly 
taught?  The  answer  is,  first,  in  Numbers  19.  God, 
through  Moses,  makes  provision  for  the  typical  purifica- 
tion of  His  people;  a  red  heifer  was  killed  and  burned 
outside  of  the  camp,  her  ashes  gathered  up  and  mixed 
with  water  and  this  lye  of  commingled  ashes  and  water 
was  kept   for  purification,  hence  the  name  "water  of 


BOOK  OF  TITUS  129 

cleansing  and  purification."  It  was  administered  by 
taking  a  branch  of  hyssop  and  sprinkHng  it  upon  the 
one  to  be  cleansed. 

In  Ezekiel  36  we  have  a  second  exceedingly  pertinent 
reference:  There  the  prophet  foretells  that  the  dis- 
persed Jews  shall  one  day  be  gathered  together  and 
saved  and,  as  in  this  Titus  passage,  he  says  that  it  is 
not  on  account  of  anything  they  have  done.  Then  he 
describes  how  they  are  to  be  saved :  "Then  I  will  sprinkle 
the  water  of  purification  on  you  and  you  shall  be  cleansed 
from  all  your  filthiness  and  all  your  iniquities.  I  will 
take  away  your  stony  heart  and  give  you  a  heart  of  flesh, 
and  put  my  spirit  within  you,  and  then  ye  shall  keep  my 
commandments."  Here  we  have  the  first  element  of 
regeneration  typified,  in  the  water  of  cleansing;  its  sec- 
ond element  in  the  renewing  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  Re- 
generation always  consists  of  two  elements :  first,  cleans- 
ing ;  second,  renewing.    The  cleansing  always  comes  first. 

We  have  another  reference  to  it  in  Psalm  51  where 
David  says,  "Wash  me  and  I  shall  be  whiter  than  snow ; 
purify  me  with  hyssop  and  I  shall  be  clean.  Renew  a 
right  spirit  within  me."  Here  are  precisely  the  same 
thoughts  presented  by  the  Psalmist,  and  they  are  the  very 
thoughts  presented  by  the  Titus  passage,  the  "washing 
of  regeneration  and  renewing  of  the  Holy  Spirit,"  and 
it  means  exactly  what  it  means  in  the  third  chapter  of 
John,  "Born  of  water  and  Spirit."  What  then,  does 
the  water  of  purification,  referred  to  in  the  Ezekiel  and 
Psalmist  passages,  typify?  The  answer  is  to  be  found 
in  the  letter  to  the  Hebrews,  9th  chapter:  "For  if  the 
ashes  of  a  heifer  sanctify  unto  the  cleansing  of  the  flesh, 
how  much  more  shall  the  blood  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
purify  your  conscience  to  serve  the  true  and  living  God?" 

So  that  this  water-cleansing  in  Numbers  and  in  Eze- 


130  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

kiel,  and  in  Psalm  51  and  in  John  3  refer  to  the  cleans- 
ing by  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ.  When  our  Lord  said 
to  Nicodemus:  "Except  a  man  be  born  of  water  and 
Spirit"  it  was  the  same  as  saying  "Except  a  man  be 
cleansed  by  the  Spirit's  application  of  the  blood  of  Christ, 
and  by  the  Spirit's  renewal,  he  cannot  see  the  kingdom 
of  heaven." 

The  proof  positive  of  the  matter  is  Christ's  answer  to 
Nicodemus'  second  pressing  question,  "How  can  these 
things  be?"  "The  wind  bloweth  where  it  listeth  and  we 
hear  the  sound  thereof,  but  cannot  tell  whence  it  cometh 
nor  whither  it  goeth."  Nicodemus  kept  insisting,  "How 
can  these  things  be?"  And  Jesus  explained  in  this  fash- 
ion :  "As  Moses  lifted  up  the  serpent  in  the  wilderness, 
even  so  must  the  Son  of  man  be  lifted  up,  that  whoso- 
ever believeth  in  Him  shall  not  perish  but  have  eternal 
life."  That  is  how  these  things  come  about.  That  is, 
when  Christ  is  held  up  before  our  eyes,  in  preaching,  and 
we  accept  him  as  a  Savior,  then  the  Holy  Spirit  first  ap- 
plies the  blood  of  Christ  to  our  hearts,  purifying  them, 
and  then  renews  us,  changing  our  nature. 

The  other  passage,  Eph.  5 :  25-27,  is  perfectly  in  line. 
It  says,  "Christ  loved  the  church  and  gave  himself  for 
it;  that  having  cleansed  it  by  the  washing  of  water 
through  the  Word,  He  might  sanctify  it  and  present  it 
to  himself  a  glorious  church,  having  neither  spot  nor 
wrinkle,  nor  blemish,  nor  any  such  thing."  Here  again 
the  work  done  is  all  on  the  divine  side.  It  is  Christ  that 
loved  us.  It  is  Christ  that  gave  himself  for  us.  It  is 
through  the  application  of  Christ's  blood  that  we  are 
cleansed,  washed  through  the  Word  preached  and  be- 
lieved. There  is  nothing  in  it  that  we  are  to  do.  We 
may  learn  our  duty  from  other  passages  of  scripture,  but 
not  from  these  three. 


BOOK  OF  TITUS  131 

The  cleansing,  mark  you,  is  a  washing  by  the  Word, 
not  a  washing  by  water.  That  is,  the  Word  of  God  holds 
up  Christ  as  the  object  of  our  faith,  we  accept  Him  and 
the  Spirit  applies  the  blood  for  our  cleansing.  It  is  said 
in  the  first  letter  to  the  Corinthians,  "Such  were  some 
of  you,  but  ye  were  washed,  ye  were  sanctified."  Here 
we  have  the  washing  first  again.  The  washing  here  re- 
ferred to  is  not  a  bodily  washing  in  baptism,  but  a 
spiritual  cleansing  that  comes  from  the  application  of 
Christ's  blood  by  the  Spirit,  then  follows  the  sanctify- 
ing. 

It  has  been  objected  that  the  term,  "loutron"  in  Titus 
3  and  Ephesians  5,  meaning  laver  or  bath,  is  too  ex- 
pressive and  broad  a  word  to  correspond  to  the  sprink- 
ling of  the  ashes  of  the  red  heifer.  I  meet  this  criticism 
squarely  by  citing  a  pertinent  passage  from  Zech.  13:1: 
"In  that  day  there  shall  be  a  fountain  opened  to  the  house 
of  David  and  to  the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem  for  sin 
and  for  uncleanness."  This  fountain  evidently  refers 
to  the  blood  of  Christ,  and  is  so  embodied  in  Cowper's 
hymn  which  we  often  sing: 

"There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood 
Drawn    from    Immanuel's   veins ; 
And  sinners  plunged  beneath  that  flood, 
Lose  all  their  guilty  stains." 

Certainly  if  the  blood  of  Christ  can  be  referred  to  as  a 
fountain  into  which  the  bathing  or  cleansing  takes  place, 
"loutron"  in  Titus  3  and  Ephesians  5  is  not  too  broad 
a  word  to  express  the  fact. 

But  to  put  on  the  crowning  proof:  In  Revelation  7, 
referring  to  the  great  multitude  which  no  man  can  num- 
ber, which  God  brought  out  of  every  nation,  of  all  tribes 
and  places,  and  tongues,  standing  before  the  throne  of 
the  Lamb,  arrayed  in  white  robes,  with  palms  in  their 


132  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

hands,  this  explanation  is  given:  "These  are  they  that 
came  out  of  the  great  tribulation,  and  they  washed  their 
robes  and  made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb." 

In  the  last  chapter  of  the  book.  Rev.  22 :  14,  it  is  said, 
"Blessed  are  they  that  wash  their  robes  that  they  may 
have  the  right  to  come  to  the  tree  of  life,  and  may  enter 
in  by  the  gates  into  the  city."  Here  is  the  washing  that 
corresponds  to  the  passage  in  I  Corinthians,  "Ye  were 
washed,"  and  to  the  passage  in  Ephesians,  "having 
cleansed  them  through  the  washing  of  water  by  the 
Word,"  and  to  the  passage  in  John,  "born  of  water." 

If  anything  more  were  needed,  the  added  clause  in 
the  Titus  passage  is,  "which  He  poured  out  upon  us 
richly  through  Jesus  Christ."  That  is,  the  washing  of  re- 
generation and  the  renewing  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  both 
come  from  His  out-poured  Spirit.  Indeed,  if  it  could  be 
maintained  that  the  "washing  of  regeneration"  in  Titus, 
and  the  "born  of  water"  in  John,  and  the  "cleansing  by 
the  washing  of  water  through  the  Word"  in  Ephesians, 
refer  to  baptism,  two  things  would  follow  like  a  con- 
queror :  First,  that  baptism  is  absolutely  essential  to  sal- 
vation ;  second,  it  must  precede  in  every  case  the  work 
of  the  Holy  Spirit  in  renewing  our  hearts.  The  gram- 
matical construction  demands  as  much,  and  no  less. 


QUESTIONS 

1.  Why  should  every  church  have  an  elder  or  elders? 

2.  What  reason  here  given   for  extending  the  scope  of  the 
examination  of  the  elder  beyond  church-entrance  qualifications? 

3.  What  passage  in  Ephesians  emphasizes  this  thought,  and 
what  the  substance  of  it? 

4.  What  the  key-note  of  this  letter? 

5.  What  use  does  Paul  make  of  doctrine  in  this  letter? 

6.  What  the  first  great  doctrinal  statement  in  the  letter? 

7.  What  does  the  grace  that  brings  salvation  teach  us? 

8.  What  fundamental  of  Christianity  taught  here? 


BOOK  OF  TITUS  133 

9.    What  the  relation  of  the  second  advent  to  the  life? 
ID.     How  may  one  with  post-millennial  views   maintain  such 
an  attitude  toward  the  second  advent? 

11.  How  are  the  lessons  of  grace  reinforced? 

12.  What  the  meaning  of  "peculiar"  in  the  King  James  ver- 


sion 


13.    What  the  second  great  doctrinal  passage  in  the  letter? 
14-     What  the  difficulty  of  the  passage? 

15.  What  is  the  meaning  of  "washing  of  regeneration,"  what 
its  true  parallels  in  scripture  and  what  their  explanation? 

16.  What  hymn  contains  this  truth? 

17.  If   "washing  of   regeneration"  here  means  baptism,  then 
what  must  follow? 


XI 


INTRODUCTION    TO    II    TIMOTHY    AND 
EXPOSITION  OF  CH.  i :  i-6 

Scriptures:   All  references  and  i :  i-6 

WE  NOW  come  to  the  second  letter  to  Timothy, 
the  last  writing  of  Paul  of  which  we  have  any 
account.  In  the  general  introduction  to  the 
pastoral  epistles  we  have  already  considered  the  historical 
problem  of  Paul's  movements  after  his  acquittal  at  Rome. 
This  letter  finds  him  again  at  Rome  and  once  more  a 
prisoner,  but  under  new  charges  and  by  a  far  different 
prosecution.  Before,  the  Jews  were  his  bitter  accusers 
and  the  Roman  judges  his  friends,  but  this  time  the  per- 
secution is  heathen.  Rome,  in  the  person  of  that  blood- 
crazed  and  beastly  Caesar,  Nero,  now  seeks  his  life. 
Seeking  to  avert  condemnation  for  himself  on  account  of 
his  burning  the  Imperial  City,  and  to  divert  thought  from 
his  own  horrible  brutalities,  he  charged  Christians  with 
burning  the  city.  A  conflagration  of  persecution  greater 
than  the  ocean  of  flame  which  devoured  the  world's 
metropolis  is  now  kindled  against  Christians,  and  fanned 
by  the  flames  of  devilish  passion  spreads  beyond  the  city 
to  other  shores  and  paints  hell  on  the  sky  over  the  fol- 
lowers of  Christ. 

Croly,  in  his  "Salathiel,"  or  "Wandering  Jew"  (which 
General  Lew  Wallace  puts  above  all  other  human  books), 
gives  the  most  vivid  description  in  all  literature  of  the 

134 


INTRODUCTION  TO  II  TIMOTHY       135 

burning  of  Rome.  It  commences :  "Rome  was  an  ocean 
of  flame."  Often  when  a  school  boy  I  have  recited  that 
matchless  piece  of  rhetoric. 

We  now  consider,  I  say,  a  more  awful,  wide-spreading 
fire,  the  moral  arson  of  time,  which  finds  no  parallel  until 
Alva's  day  in  the  low  countries  of  Belgium  and  Holland. 
Philip  n  of  Spain,  and  Nero,  in  persecution  and  hypoc- 
risy at  least,  are  par  nobile  fratrmn! 

When  Christians  are  fed  to  the  wild  beasts  of  the 
amphitheatre,  when,  like  parallel  lines  of  lamp  posts  they 
are  staked  out,  tarred,  and  set  on  fire,  to  form  an  illu- 
minated avenue  through  which  Nero  may  drive,  then  all 
sycophants,  all  imperial  appointees,  whether  executors  or 
judges,  all  spies  through  neighboring  lands,  will  court 
royal  favor  by  affecting  his  spirit  and  following  his  cue 
in  accusing  and  persecuting  them. 

Thus  the  lightning  struck  Paul.  Our  last  account  of 
him  is  his  direction  to  Titus,  when  relieved  by  Artemas 
or  Tychicus,  to  join  him  in  Nicopolis,  where  he  pro- 
posed to  winter.  But  in  this  letter  he  is  urging  Titus 
to  join  him  in  the  Roman  prison  before  that  very  winter 
comes,  and  to  bring  his  cloak  left  at  Troas  with  Carpus, 
to  keep  him  warm  in  his  winter  cell,  and  to  bring  his 
books  and  parchments  to  cheer  his  loneliness.  Not  now 
does  he  live  with  liberty  in  his  own  hired  house,  and 
preach  to  visiting  crowds. 

Two  circumstances  detailed  in  this  letter  vividly  sug- 
gest the  great  change  wrought  by  this  first  great  heathen 
persecution.  First,  its  effect  on  his  summer  friends  in 
Asia  Minor  and  Achaia.  Second,  its  effect  on  his  sum- 
mer friends  at  Rome.  It  is  now  a  death  circle  which 
environs  Paul.  Whoever  abides  near  him  courts  imperial 
disfavor  and  death.  It  is  as  if  a  general  surrounded 
by  a  numerous  staff  found  himself  the  focus  of  a  con- 


136  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

verging  fire  of  a  suddenly  unmasked  battery.  What  a 
scattering  when  the  chief  is  struck!  How  vividly  it 
recalls  an  earlier  scene  in  the  crisis  of  his  Lord:  "They 
all  forsook  Him  and  fled." 

The  thunder  of  the  coming  storm  sounded  in  Asia, 
and  at  Ephesus.  Only  after  careful,  long  continued 
study  have  I  reached  the  conclusion  that  the  beginning  of 
this  storm  struck  Paul  at  Ephesus.  The  usual  argument 
against  this  opinion  is  Paul's  statement  in  Acts  20,  when 
he  bids  the  elders  of  the  church  at  Ephesus  good-bye  at 
Miletus  and  says,  "Knowing  that  you  shall  not  see  my 
face  any  more."  In  the  main  they  did  not,  but  unques- 
tionably we  cannot  understand  this  second  letter  to  Tim- 
othy unless  we  conceive  of  Paul  at  Ephesus.  The  first 
letter  shows  that  he  wrote  it  to  Timothy  at  Ephesus,  and 
now  he  seems  to  have  gotten  back  there. 

How  pathetic  his  own  account  of  the  situation,  and 
how  tragic  his  loneliness!  He  writes  in  this  letter  to 
Timothy:  "This  thou  knowest  that  all  that  are  in  Asia 
are  turned  away  from  me,  of  whom  are  Phygelus  and 
Hermongenes."  Now,  it  is  a  difficult  thing  to  account 
for  such  a  revolution  towards  Paul  in  the  place  where 
his  greatest  labors  were  bestowed  and  his  greatest  tri- 
umphs achieved,  and  yet  we  must  in  some  way  account 
for  it.    There  are  three  elements  in  the  account: 

1.  The  frown  on  Nero's  face  toward  Christians  would 
take  away  from  Paul,  or  any  other  Christian,  sympathy 
and  co-operation,  or  even  justice  on  the  part  of  Roman 
population. 

2.  Under  the  shadow  of  that  frown,  like  wild  beasts  at 
night,  come  out  the  old  Jewish  opponents  of  Paul  and 
attack  him,  the  more  incensed  because  of  his  recent  letter 
to  the  Hebrews.  So  he  says  to  Timothy:  "Alexander, 
the  coppersmith,  displayed  much  evil  behavior  to  me. 


INTRODUCTION  TO  II  TIMOTHY       137 

The  Lord  will  reward  him  according  to  his  deeds,  against 
whom  be  thou  on  thy  guard  also,  for  he  strongly  with- 
stood our  words."  Then  in  another  part  of  the  letter 
he  mentions  Hymeneus  and  Philetus,  apostates  from  the 
faith  whose  words  eat  as  a  canker.  In  the  great  dis- 
course at  Miletus,  years  before,  he  had  warned  them 
that  from  among  them  should  arise  wolves,  not  sparing 
the  flock.  So  long  as  Paul  had  Roman  favor,  they  could 
not  proceed  to  extremities  against  him,  but  now  that 
Rome  is  persecuting  Christians,  all  of  these  Judaizing 
teachers  came  out  in  bitterest  opposition  against  Paul. 

3.  This  is  now  about  the  year  68  A.  D.  In  the  year 
70  A.  D.  Titus  destroyed  the  city  of  Jerusalem,  so  at  this 
time  war  was  just  about  to  break  out  in  Judea  between 
the  Jews  and  the  Romans.  Josephus  is  in  command  in 
Gallilee.  We  find  a  full  account  in  his  Jewish  wars.  The 
spirit  that  led  them  to  revolt  against  Rome  became  ex- 
ceedingly aggressive  and  proscriptive. 

In  Christ's  time  a  publican  was  hated  because  he 
gathered  Roman  revenue.  Jerusalem  was  always  like  a 
boiling  pot,  and  any  one  recommending  submission  to  the 
powers  that  be  was  intensely  hated.  Everywhere  Paul 
taught  that  Christians  should  pray  for  and  be  obedient 
to  those  in  authority.  These  injunctions  of  Paul  would 
naturally  be  intensely  resented  by  what  was  at  that  time 
called  the  patriotic  part  of  the  Jewish  people,  those  who 
wanted  to  rebel  against  Rome;  "pay  no  tribute,"  they 
said,  "but  fight  for  natural  freedom." 

These  things,  together  with  the  announcement  in  He- 
brews of  the  abrogation  of  the  Old  Covenant  and  the 
impending  destruction  of  the  nation,  account  for  the 
change  of  sentiment  toward  Paul  in  proconsular  Asia. 
Not  only  Christian  Jews  but  Gentiles  would  be  cowed 
by  imperial  disfavor,  and  so  Judaizing  teachers  on  the 


138  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

outskirts  of  each  congregation  would  press  the  point 
that  he  was  untrue  to  his  own  country  in  advocating 
submission  to  Rome.  So  all  Asia  was  turned  against 
Paul. 

Hymeneus  and  Philetus,  apostates  from  the  faith, 
whose  words  eat  like  a  gangrene,  resume  their  profane 
babbling  and  overthrow  the  faith  of  others.  Indeed,  Paul 
might  have  starved,  had  not  Onesiphorus  in  many  things 
ministered  to  him  at  Ephesus,  with  the  cognizance  of 
Timothy. 

When  Paul  left  Ephesus,  according  to  this  letter,  he 
left  Timothy  in  tears :  "When  I  remember  your  tears." 
He  first  escaped  to  Miletus,  a  sea  port,  and  from  that 
place,  in  all  probability,  he  hoped  to  get  an  outward  bound 
ship  that  would  take  him  far  away.  When  he  gets  to 
Miletus,  his  stafif  begins  to  thin  out. 

He  says,  "Trophimus  I  left  at  Miletus  sick,  and  Tychi- 
cus  I  sent  back  to  Ephesus."  They  at  Ephesus,  yet 
friendly,  would  want  to  know  how  he  was  getting  along, 
and  then,  too,  he  wants  to  have  somebody  there  to  relieve 
Timothy,  so  that  Timothy  can  join  him.  Finding  no 
outward  bound  vessel,  he,  as  may  be  conjectured,  takes  a 
coasting  vessel  for  Troas,  that  from  that  port  he  may 
reach  Europe  across  the  Aegean  sea. 

We  infer  that  after  reaching  Troas  he  left  it  in  a 
hurry.  That  is  inferrable  from  the  fact  that  he  left  his 
books,  parchments,  and  cloak,  which  constituted  his  bed 
as  well  as  outer  protection  in  bad  weather.  He  reached 
Corinth,  and  there  another  adjutant  dropped  out :  "Eras- 
tus  abode  at  Corinth."    The  stafif  keeps  thinning. 

Titus,  it  is  possible,  acting  upon  the  letter  sent  him, 
has  joined  him.  Somewhere,  perhaps  in.Achaia,  the 
bolt  struck  him.  It  is  now  lightning  where  it  had  been 
thunder.    Notice  the  efifect:    "Then  Demas  forsook  me. 


INTRODUCTION  TO  II  TIMOTHY        139 

having  loved  this  present  world."  Demas  struck  out  for 
Thessalonica.  It  seems  that  to  stay  by  Paul's  side  means 
the  next  world,  and  Demas  loved  this  present  world. 
Crescens  turns  back  toward  Galatia,  and  Titus  toward 
Dalmatia,  only  Luke  is  with  him. 

See  how  his  crowd  has  thinned  out,  and  how  it  answers 
the  illustration  I  gave  of  the  general  and  his  staff  meet- 
ing suddenly  the  fire  of  a  masked  battery.  I  have  seen 
such  a  thing  on  the  battlefield  myself,  and  the  "scattera- 
tion"  that  takes  place,  leaving  the  general  alone,  where 
just  before  the  staff  is  parading  all  around  him. 

It  is  even  worse  at  the  other  end  of  the  line,  that  is, 
at  Rome.  When  he  gets  there  no  friendly  delegation 
comes  out  to  meet  and  encourage  him.  Men  through 
fear  of  Nero's  deadly  hate  turn  from  Paul  as  from  a 
leper.  At  his  examining  trial  he  stands  alone:  "In  my 
first  defense  no  one  came  to  my  help,  but  all  forsook  me. 
May  it  not  be  laid  to  their  charge.  But  the  Lord  stood 
by  me  and  empowered  me,  in  order  that  through  me 
the  message  might  be  fulfilled  and  all  the  Gentiles  might 
hear."  That  is,  Paul  cannot  die  until  he  completes  the 
gospel  for  the  nations  that  are  alien  from  the  common- 
wealth of  Israel. 

Though  the  Lord  stood  by  him,  the  strain  of  loneliness 
was  terrific,  and  the  hunger  for  human  sympathy  and 
companionship.  This  scene  recalls  an  incident  in  the 
life  of  our  Lord  after  His  hard-doctrine  discourse  on 
the  Bread  of  Life  at  Capernaum.  The  record  says  that 
many  of  His  disciples  went  back  and  walked  with  Him 
no  more,  and  Jesus  said  therefore  unto  the  twelve, 
"Would  ye  also  go  away?" 

So  Paul,  in  this  dire  case,  with  some  trace  of  appre- 
hension seems  to  plead:  "O,  Timothy,  don't  you  be 
ashamed  of  my  chain;  don't  you  fail  to  guard  the  deposit 


140  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

of  faith  which  God  gave  to  you.  Come  to  me  quickly, 
before  winter,  I  need  my  cloak  and  books.  Bring  them. 
Pick  up  Mark  by  the  way  and  bring  him." 

One  ray  of  light  shines  in  the  gloom :  Onesiphorus 
who  had  protected  and  supplied  him  in  dangerous  times 
at  Ephesus,  followed  him  all  the  way  to  Rome,  hunts 
him  up,  and  ministers  to  him  many  times,  not  being 
ashamed  of  Paul's  chains.  No  wonder  Paul  says  to 
Timothy:  "May  the  Lord  have  mercy  on  the  household 
of  Onesiphorus,  and  reward  him  in  that  day."  That  was 
a  plucky  thing  to  do.  There  in  Ephesus,  when  all  Asia 
turned  from  him,  Onesiphorus  had  said,  "I  will  take  care 
of  you."  And  when  he  heard  that  Paul  had  been  ar- 
rested and  taken  to  Rome,  he  leaves  his  home  and  his 
business  and  goes  to  Rome.  It  is  hard  to  find  Paul  now, 
not  as  it  was  before.  Doubtless  at  this  time  he  is  shut 
up  in  a  cell,  but  Onesiphorus  finds  him,  and  Paul  says 
he  came  to  him  and  refreshed  him  many  times. 

From  this  imprisonment  Paul  is  not  so  hopeful  of  de- 
liverance as  before.  He  considers  himself  as  already 
being  ofifered  up  and  the  time  of  his  departure  at  hand. 
He  seems  to  consider  that  he  has  finished  his  course,  and 
fought  his  fight,  and  yet  later  on  in  the  letter  he  expects 
to  winter  at  Rome.  When  he  says,  "At  my  first  de- 
fense nobody  stood  with  me,"  that  seems  to  imply  that 
he  had  a  second  examining  trial  more  favorable  than 
the  first  one,  and  that  somebody  stood  by  him  in  that 
trial. 

Whether  Timothy  finds  him  alive,  this  letter  does  not 
show.  But  it  is  sure  that  towards  the  last  his  condi- 
tion is  more  favorable  than  at  first.  Indeed,  there  seems 
to  have  been  quite  a  favorable  reaction.  How  otherwise 
will  you  account  for  the  letter's  ending  this  way :  "Give 
diligence  to  come  before  winter.    Eubulus  saluteth  thee. 


INTRODUCTION  TO  II  TIMOTHY       141 

and  Pudens,  and  Linus,  and  Claudia,  and  all  the  breth- 
ren." And  the  preceding  expression:  "I  was  delivered 
out  of  the  mouth  of  the  lion."  It  seems  that  the  situation 
has  moderated. 

They  could  not  connect  Paul  with  the  burning  of 
Rome,  yet  it  may  be  that  was  the  first  charge  against  him 
and  nobody  would  stand  by  him  under  such  an  accusa- 
tion. It  is  evident  that  in  this  first  trial  Paul  was  deliv- 
ered from  imminent  death,  though  held  on  other  charges. 
If  the  charge  were  arson,  Paul  might  well  show  his  ab- 
sence from  the  city  at  the  time  of  the  burning,  and  every- 
where he  taught  against  lawlessness,  sedition,  arson, 
anything  that  would  subvert  society,  anything  like  an- 
archy. 

Now  I  will  take  up  the  exegesis :  The  first  thing  to 
determine  is  about  when  was  this  letter  written?  Prob- 
ably late  in  A.  D.  67.  The  "winter"  of  this  letter  must 
be  the  same  as  the  winter  referred  to  in  Titus.  Winter 
is  coming  and  he  wants  Timothy  to  come  before  naviga- 
tion closes. 

The  salutation  set  forth  in  the  first  two  verses  con- 
tains a  note  of  special  affection :  "Timothy,  my  beloved 
child."  Circumstances  call  for  this  tenderness.  The 
analysis  consists  of  only  one  thing:  A  faithful  minister 
of  Jesus  Christ.  That  is  the  subject  of  the  whole  letter — 
fidelity  in  a  preacher.  We  will  consider  that  fidelity, 
however,  from  many  view-points.  Whatever  the  view- 
point, one  thing  runs  through  this  letter — be  faithful  to 
Jesus  Christ  from  conversion  to  death. 

Note  his  thanksgiving  and  prayer :  "I  thank  God 
whom  I  serve  from  my  forefathers  in  a  pure  conscience, 
how  unceasing  is  my  remembrance  of  thee  in  my  suppli- 
cations night  and  day."  He  left  Timothy  in  a  pretty  hard 
place,  with  that  menacing  coppersmith,  all  those  Judaizing 


142  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

teachers,  and  with  the  hostile  attitude  of  the  Roman 
power. 

Next  thought :  "Longing  to  see  you."  We  may  rest 
assured  that  that  is  not  a  formal  statement.  If  there  was 
anything  on  this  earth  that  Paul  wanted  right  then,  apart 
from  God's  favor,  it  was  to  see  Timothy.  What  brought 
up  that  longing  to  see  him?  "Remembering  thy  tears." 
When  Paul  had  to  leave  Ephesus  so  suddenly,  he  had 
left  Timothy  in  tears.  Remembering  this,  it  makes  Paul 
long  to  see  him. 

Now  comes  a  second  remembrance.  He  is  in  a  position 
where  memory  would  have  much  to  do  with  both  his 
prayers  and  his  longings.  "Having  been  reminded  of  the 
unfeigned  faith  in  thee."  Who  brought  that  reminder? 
Somebody  must  have  brought  a  message  to  Paul  that 
Timothy's  faith  was  standing  like  a  rock.  I  think  it 
was  Onesiphorus,  whose  coming  constitutes  a  part  at 
least  of  the  occasion  of  the  letter.  When  he  contemplates 
the  steadfastness  of  Timothy's  faith  as  reported  by 
Onesiphorus,  he  thinks  of  its  origin :  "Which  dwelt  first 
in  thy  grandmother  Lois,  and  in  thy  mother  Eunice." 
Paul's  mind  goes  back  to  that  first  meeting  held  in 
Derbe,  those  Jewish  women,  the  mother,  the  daughter, 
and  the  daughter's  little  boy  sitting  in  the  audience,  and 
under  his  preaching  all  were  converted. 

His  mind,  rapidly  reviewing  the  past,  comes  to  his  sec- 
ond meeting  with  Timothy  on  the  occasion  of  his  ordina- 
tion, hence  the  exhortation:  "For  which  cause  I  put 
thee  in  remembrance,  that  thou  stir  up  the  gift  of  God 
[now,  Timothy,  I  want  your  memory  exercised]  which 
is  in  thee  through  the  laying  on  of  hands."  When  Tim- 
othy was  ordained,  Paul  was  in  the  presbytery.  After 
the  prayer  the  presbytery  passed  by  and  each  one  laid  his 
hand  on  Timothy's  head.    When  Paul's  hands  touched  his 


INTRODUCTION  TO  II  TIMOTHY        143 

head  the  mighty  power  of  the  Spirit  of  God  came  upon 
him.  "Timothy,  stir  up  that  gift;  don't  let  it  rust  from 
disuse.    That  gift  was  made  for  use." 

That  is  a  good  exhortation  for  any  preacher.  What- 
ever gifts  the  Lord  has  given  us,  we  can  make  them 
stronger  by  use,  or  we  can  enfeeble  them  by  disuse. 
Sometimes  a  spirit  of  lethargy  comes  on  a  preacher; 
he  seems  to  be  spiritually  about  half  asleep.  He  needs  to 
stir  up  the  gifts  which  have  been  given  him.  I  remem- 
ber once  for  about  two  or  three  weeks,  while  I  could 
theoretically  take  hold  of  things,  I  could  not  take  hold 
of  them  with  my  soul.  When  that  time  comes  to  us,  let 
us  stir  up  our  gifts. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Give  the  circumstances  under  which  this  letter  was  written. 

2.  When  and  where  written? 

3.  How  account  for  the  sudden  revolution  toward  Paul? 

4.  Who  entertained  Paul  on  his  last  visit  to  Ephesus? 

5.  What  route  did  Paul  take  when  he  left  Timothy  at 
Ephesus,  what  points  did  he  touch,  and  what  of  his  staff? 

6.  How  received  at  Rome? 

7.  What  one  ray  of  light  shines  in  the  gloom? 

8.  What  passage  in  this  letter  indicates  his  loss  of  hope  of 
deliverance? 

9.  What  indications  that  conditions  were  more  favorable  to- 
ward the  end? 

10.  What  the  tenderness  in  the  salutation  and  why? 

11.  Put  the  analysis   into  one  great   theme. 

12.  What  are  Paul's  remembrances  as  expressed  in  his  thanks- 
giving? 


XII 

A  FAITHFUL  MINISTER  OF  JESUS  CHRIST 
Scriptures:    i :  7 — 2 :  5 

WE  CLOSED  the  last  chapter  with  the  statement 
that  when  Paul  laid  his  hands  on  Timothy's 
head,  the  power  of  the  Spirit  came  upon  him. 
He  reminds  Timothy  of  the  fact  that  the  gift  of  the 
Spirit  has  for  one  of  its  purposes  to  confer  boldness  and 
courage.  That  leads  us  to  see  the  application,  7th  verse : 
"For  God  gave  us  not  a  spirit  of  fearfulness ;  but  of 
power  and  love,  and  discipline." 

We  see  the  force  of  the  "therefore"  with  which  the 
8th  verse  commences:  "Be  not  ashamed  therefore  of 
the  testimony  of  our  Lord,  nor  of  me  His  prisoner :  but 
suffer  hardship  with  the  gospel  according  to  the  power 
of  God."  Paul  did  not  know  but  that  Timothy  over  there, 
with  all  that  outgoing  tide  might  do  like  some  of  the 
others — get  scared  and  be  ashamed  of  the  gospel  and  its 
testimony.  I  have  known  preachers  who  were  ashamed 
of  it  in  what  is  called  "polite  society." 

Paul  illustrated  by  referring  to  God's  salvation  and 
calling,  "Who  saved  us  and  called  us,  not  according  to 
our  works,  but  according  to  His  own  purpose  and  grace 
which  was  given  us  in  Christ  Jesus  before  times  eternal 
[he  never  loses  sight  of  the  doctrine  of  election  and  fore- 
ordination],  but  hath  now  been  manifested  by  the  ap- 
pearing of  our  Savior,  Jesus  Christ."  Now  comes  a 
great  text.    I  have  preached  from  it  about  thirty  times  in 

144 


A  FAITHFUL  MINISTER  OF  JESUS     145 

my  life :  "Our  Savior,  Jesus  Christ,  who  abolished  death 
and  brought  life  and  immortality  to  light  through  the 
gospel." 

When  the  Southern  Baptist  Convention  met  in  New 
Orleans,  I  was  appointed  to  preach  at  a  Presbyterian 
church  at  night.  I  took  that  text  and  for  just  about  one 
hour,  without  stopping,  and  with  great  fervor,  I  preached 
on  it.  The  Presbyterian  preacher's  wife  said  she  knew 
I  had  written  it  and  memorized  it  word  for  word.  But 
I  had  not.  My  heart  was  in  it,  and  speaking  of  the  King 
my  tongue  became  as  the  pen  of  a  ready  writer. 

"Jesus  Christ,  who  abolished  death."  Very  few  people 
believe  that.  He  said  to  Martha:  "Whosoever  liveth 
and  believeth  on  me  shall  never  die.  Believest  thou  this?" 
What  is  meant  by  it  ?  Not  altogether  as  death  was  abol- 
ished in  the  cases  of  Enoch  and  Elijah,  and  the  living 
who  are  to  be  changed  at  the  second  coming  of  Christ, 
as  it  was  originally  intended  that  man  should,  by  ac- 
cess to  the  tree  of  life,  be  freed  from  all  susceptibility 
to  weakness  and  death  and  mortality,  and  become  im- 
mortal. That  is  not  the  meaning  here.  What  is  meant  is 
that  in  the  separation  of  soul  and  body  there  is  a  dififer- 
ence  between  the  believer's  case  and  the  sinner's  case. 
To  one,  in  a  true  sense,  death  is  abolished,  and  to  the 
other  it  is  not  abolished. 

The  meaning  can  more  accurately  be  conveyed  by  an 
illustration :  In  the  Pentateuch  Canaan  is  the  land  of 
Promise,  and  Egypt  is  this  world.  There  are  types  run- 
ning all  through  the  pilgrimages.  The  last  barrier  inter- 
vening between  them  and  the  promised  land  is  the  River 
Jordan.  When  they  got  to  the  river  it  was  at  its  flood — 
no  bridges,  no  boat.  They  had  to  cross  that — men, 
women,  children,  flocks  and  herds.  Without  any  explana- 
tion God  commands  them  to  go  straight  forward:  and 


146  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

it  came  to  pass  that  when  the  feet  of  the  priest  who 
went  before  the  Ark,  touched  the  brim  of  the  water,  the 
river  divided.  God  stayed  the  waters,  and  the  waters 
backed  up  against  His  will,  His  will  being  the  dam  that 
stopped  it,  all  the  water  below  ran  off,  and  they  crossed 
over  dry-shod.  In  that  illustration  we  see  that  when  they 
came  to  the  last  barrier  separating  them  from  the  Prom- 
ised Land,  that  dreadful  river  was  no  river  to  them. 
The  channel  was  there,  but  they  passed  over  dry-shod. 
It  is  represented  this  way  in  our  hymnology: 

"Could  I  but  climb  where  Moses  stood  and  view  the  landscape 
o'er 
Not  Jordan's   stream,   nor   death's   cold  flood  could   fright  me 
from  the  shore." 

When  the  Christian  dies,  no  matter  what  suffering  his 
body  may  seem  to  go  through,  in  the  hour  of  dissolution 
of  his  soul  and  body,  there  is  no  death,  no  matter  whether 
he  is  a  young  Christian  or  an  old  one.  It  is  no  more 
than  stepping  over  a  chalk  mark  on  the  floor ;  it  is  no 
more  than  stepping  through  a  door  into  another  room. 
It  is  to  him  all  light — no  darkness. 

Take  the  case  of  Lazarus :  "And  it  came  to  pass  that 
the  beggar  died  [no  pause  at  all],  and  was  carried  by  the 
angels  into  Abraham's  bosom."  Abraham  reclining  at  a 
banquet  in  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven,  many  coming  from 
the  North,  South,  East,  and  West,  and  reclining  with 
him ;  one  of  them  is  Lazarus,  who  was  starving  on  earth, 
begging  the  crumbs  that  fell  from  the  rich  man's  table. 
At  the  very  instant  of  his  death  he  passed  to  the  heavenly 
banquet,  and  received  the  honorable  place  next  to  Abra- 
ham, so  that  his  head  is  against  Abraham's  bosom,  as 
John  at  the  Lord's  table  rested  his  head  on  the  bosom  of 
Jesus. 


A  FAITHFUL  MINISTER  OF  JESUS     147 

That  is  what  Paul  means  by  abolishing  death.  There 
is  no  sting.  My  soul  has  so  taken  possession  of  that 
thought,  and  I  have  witnessed  so  many  cases  where  dying 
Christians  reaHzed  it,  that  I  have  not  had  any  fear  of 
death  whatever  for  many  years.  There  is  nothing  hor- 
rible in  it  to  me,  not  a  bit  more  than  just  lying  down  and 
going  to  sleep.    Jesus  has  abolished  death  to  His  people. 

I  have  before  quoted  the  testimony  of  a  Methodist 
bishop,  who  all  of  his  life  time  feared  death ;  it  was  a 
terrible  thing  to  him.  He  was  afraid  that  when  he  came 
to  die  his  agitation  would  bring  reproach  on  the  cause 
of  Christ.  He  was  not  afraid  of  any  external  enemy, 
but  was  afraid  that  in  dying  his  fear  might  reproach 
Christ's  name.  But  just  as  he  was  dying  his  eyes  were 
opened,  his  face  was  shining,  and  looking  around  the 
room  he  said,  "Brethren,  brethren,  is  this  death — this 
light,  this  glory  ?    Why  should  I  have  dreaded  it  ?" 

That  is  the  thought.  "Our  Savior,  Jesus  Christ,  hath 
abolished  death."  The  bearing  of  this  on  Timothy's  case 
was  this :  "Persecutors  are  seeking  your  life,  as  they 
seek  mine.  Remember  that  the  Lord  said  they  cannot 
kill  the  soul.  They  cannot  even  bring  terror  to  the  soul, 
in  the  dissolution  of  soul  and  body."  There  is  no  sting 
in  death  to  the  Christian.  The  sting  of  death  is  sin,  and 
sin  has  been  blotted  out.  The  strength  of  sin  is  the 
law,  and  the  law  has  been  satisfied.  The  power  of  death 
is  the  devil,  but  he  has  been  conquered. 

Now  look  at  the  second  part :  "Who  hath  abolished 
death  and  brought  life  and  immortality  to  light  through 
the  gospel."  What  is  life?  Life  everlasting  for  the 
soul.  A  man  dies  and  there  lies  his  cold  body.  Where 
is  that  which  a  few  moments  ago  warmed  and  animated 
that  body?  As  Job  said:  "Man  dieth  and  giveth  up  his 
spirit.    Where  is  he?"    When  Jesus  brought  life  to  light, 


148  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

and  He  himself  entered  into  the  realm  of  death,  that 
bourne  from  which  no  traveler  has  ever  returned,  and 
came  back  from  it,  He  flashed  a  flood  of  light  upon  the 
status  of  the  spirits  of  the  departed  saints.  That  status 
existed  before,  but  had  never  been  brought  to  light. 

The  river  Niger  has  many  mouths  and  empties  itself 
into  the  Gulf  of  Guinea.  It  has  always  had  them,  ever 
since  it  has  been  a  river,  but  the  fact  was  not  brought 
to  light  until  a  few  years  ago.  Travelers  inland  would 
speak  of  a  great  river  flowing  southwesterly,  which  must 
somewhere  empty  into  the  Atlantic  ocean.  But  sailors 
who  had  coasted  along  the  coast  of  Africa  and  finding  no 
such  great  river  emptying  into  the  Atlantic,  were  positive 
that  it  was  all  a  lie — that  there  was  no  such  river,  for  a 
river  must  flow  somewhere.  Finally  Dr.  Lardner  went 
inland  and  struck  it.  He  got  in  a  boat  and  determined 
to  follow  it  to  the  ocean  to  find  out  where  the  river  went. 
Thus  by  actual  experiment  he  discovered  that  before 
reaching  the  Atlantic  the  river  divided  into  a  great  many 
small  streams,  reaching  the  ocean  through  a  delta. 

Just  so,  Jesus,  having  entered  personally  into  the  dis- 
embodied state,  and  returned  to  the  embodied  state  of 
His  resurrection,  opened  up  to  us  the  path  of  life — 
that  is,  the  path  of  the  soul.  It  goes  right  to  heaven. 
Now,  immortality  is  quite  a  different  thing;  that  con- 
cerns the  body.  When  He  came  back  He  brought  to 
light  the  immortality  of  the  body  through  His  resurrec- 
tion, that  God  intended  to  save  the  whole  man,  not  only 
his  soul,  but  to  raise  and  glorify  his  body. 

In  view  of  the  fact  that  our  Savior  had  abolished 
death  and  brought  to  light  the  life  of  the  soul  and  the 
immortality  of  the  body,  by  the  power  of  His  resurrec- 
tion, why  should  we  be  afraid  of  death?  What  is  there 
frightful  in  it?    Paul  says,  Jesus  having  brought  back 


A  FAITHFUL  MINISTER  OF  JESUS     149 

these  messages,  concerning  both  the  state  of  the  soul, 
and  the  future  redemption  of  the  body,  the  next  thing 
is  the  gospel,  the  story  of  God,  or  glad  tidings.  He 
says,  "I  was  appointed  a  preacher,  and  an  apostle,  and  a 
teacher." 

Look  at  these  three  words.  I  was  appointed  to  go  out 
and  preach  these  things  to  the  people  intimidated  by 
formidable  adversaries,  in  bondage  to  the  fear  of  death, 
the  sting  of  sin,  the  strength  of  the  law,  and  back  of  it 
all  the  power  of  the  devil  which  pressed  to  pallid  lips 
the  cup  of  death.  I  was  appointed  to  go  out  and  tell 
everybody  these  good  things.    That  is  preaching. 

Then  he  says,  "I  was  appointed  an  apostle."  That  is 
a  very  different  idea.  An  apostle  must  be  a  witness  to 
the  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ.  He  testified  that  he 
was  an  eye-witness.  How?  'T  have  seen  the  Lord  since 
He  came  back.  He  appeared  to  me  on  the  road  to  Da- 
mascus. He  has  stood  by  me  many  times  since.  I 
saw  Him  in  His  glory,  and  therefore  I  am  an  apostle. 
I  am  a  witness  to  that  resurrection," 

The  other  thought  is  that  he  was  appointed  a  teacher. 
That  is  somewhat  different  from  a  preacher.  A  teacher 
instructs  and  expounds;  a  preacher  proclaims.  The 
teacher  takes  the  word  of  God  and  rightly  divides  it, 
giving  to  each  one  his  portion  in  due  season,  administer- 
ing the  sincere  milk  of  the  word  to  young  converts,  and 
the  meat  to  the  more  mature  Christians.  That  is  the  dis- 
tinction between  preacher,  apostle,  and  teacher. 

He  goes  on:  "For  which  cause  I  suffer  all  these 
things,  yet  I  am  not  ashamed."  "These  things  have  not 
come  upon  me  because  I  have  done  wrong.  How  can 
there  be  shame  unless  I  have  sinned?  I  have  robbed  no 
temples,  I  have  committed  no  murder,  I  have  violated 
neither  the  Jewish  nor  the  Roman  law ;  but  these  suffer- 


150  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

ings  have  come  upon  me  because  I  have  preached  these 
glad  tidings,  witnessed  these  glad  tidings,  and  taught 
these  glad  tidings." 

He  continues  the  thought  (Paul's  thoughts  are  always 
connected)  :  "am  not  ashamed."  "If  I  had  stolen  some- 
thing, or  had  killed  a  man  and  had  been  convicted  there- 
for before  the  court,  I  might  be  ashamed.  But  these 
things  have  come  upon  me  because  I  have  done  what  I 
ought  to  do,  and  I  am  not  ashamed  and  you  ought  not 
to  be." 

That  brings  us  to  the  next  great  text :  "I  know  Him 
whom  I  have  believed."  Faith  is  not  credulity ;  it  is 
founded  on  knowledge,  as  Dr.  Taylor  so  well  put  it  in  a 
sermon,  the  outline  of  which  appears  in  Chapter  HL 
"Knowledge  brings  you  near  to  the  Kingdom,  faith  puts 
you  in  it."  Knowledge  precedes  faith.  "I  know  Him 
whom  I  believed.  I  never  would  have  attained  this 
serene  confidence  by  some  kinds  of  knowledge.  It  is  not 
what  I  know,  but  whom  I  know,  the  personality  of  Christ, 
and  I  am  persuaded,  I  have  assurance  in  my  mind,  that 
Jesus  is  able  to  guard  what  I  have  committed  to  Him." 

Paul  by  faith  received  Christ,  and  then  by  faith  com- 
mitted to  Christ  his  life:  "Now  I  have  turned  that  over 
to  the  Lord ;  it  is  in  His  keeping.  If  you  say  that  I  am 
not  a  skilled  swordsman  and  am  therefore  unable  to  de- 
fend my  life,  I  will  admit  it.  If  you  say  that  my  powers 
are  below  the  powers  of  the  devil,  who  seeks  my  life,  I 
will  admit  it.  But  I  have  this  persuasion :  The  very 
day  I  believed  in  Christ  I  committed  all  to  Him,  and  my 
life  is  hid  in  Christ  with  God,  and  I  am  persuaded  that 
He  is  able  to  guard  it  to-day,  to-night,  to-morrow,  next 
week,  next  year,  when  I  die,  after  I  die,  and  clear  on 
until  that  day,  i.  e.,  the  time  when  He  will  come  back, 
and  when  He  comes  he  will  bring  it  with  Him.    He  will 


A  FAITHFUL  MINISTER  OF  JESUS     151 

guard  what  I  have  committed  unto  Him  through  all 
peril  periods.  There  will  be  no  after  perils  when  Jesus 
comes  again." 

13th  verse:  "Hold  the  pattern  of  sound  words  which 
thou  hast  heard  from  me,  in  faith  and  love,  which  is  in 
Christ  Jesus."  Modern  people  say,  "Don't  have  much 
creed,  and  when  you  state  it,  don't  let  it  take  any  par- 
ticular form.  Somebody  might  object."  Paul  said,  "I 
delivered  you  a  pattern  of  sound  words,  and  you  are  to 
take  it  just  as  I  gave  it  to  you.  You  are  not  to  change 
it."  No  man  is  true  to  the  faith  who  departs  from  the 
pattern. 

Suppose,  for  example,  baptism,  the  pattern  is  this: 
"They  both  went  down  into  the  water;  John  baptized 
Him  and  they  both  came  up  out  of  the  water."  What 
did  he  do  when  he  baptized  Him?  Christ  was  buried  in 
baptism,  and  we  with  Christ  were  buried  in  baptism  in 
the  likeness  of  His  death  and  raised  in  the  likeness  of 
His  resurrection.  That  is  the  pattern.  Why  not  just 
sprinkle  a  few  drops  on  one's  head?  That  changes  the 
pattern.  It  changes  the  thought.  Let  it  stand  as  it  was 
given. 

We  may  apply  that  pattern  to  the  Lord's  supper.  We 
notice  how  carefully  a  Baptist  preacher,  when  he  admin- 
isters the  Lord's  supper,  quotes  Christ's  very  words,  and 
the  words  that  Paul  used  in  repeating  the  ordinance. 
Why?  He  must  stick  to  the  pattern.  He  must  present 
the  ordinance  just  as  we  received  it. 

He  refers  to  the  same  thing  again  in  the  14th  verse: 
"That  good  thing  which  was  committed  unto  thee,  guard 
through  the  Holy  Spirit  which  dwelleth  in  us."  Some 
say  it  makes  no  difference  what  a  man  believes  if  his 
heart  is  all  right.  If  his  heart  is  all  right  he  will  not 
believe  all  sorts  of  things.     "As  a  man  thinketh  in  his 


152  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

heart,  so  he  is."  It  is  the  faith  we  have  that  forms  the 
life  we  Hve. 

In  the  introductory  chapter  I  expounded  verses  15-18. 
What  Paul  refers  to  here  is  what  took  place  when  the 
storm  broke  on  him.  All  Asia  turned  away  from  him. 
Only  Onesiphorus  and  Timothy  stood  by  him.  Speak- 
ing of  Onesiphorus :  "How  many  things  he  ministered 
at  Ephesus  thou  knowest  very  well."  Then  when  he 
heard  that  Paul  was  a  prisoner  at  Rome,  he  went  to 
Rome  and  many  times  refreshed  him  there.  That  closes 
the  chapter. 

2:1:  "Thou,  therefore,  my  child,  be  strengthened  in 
the  grace  that  is  in  Jesus  Christ."  When  Paul  wrote 
this  he  knew  that  the  time  of  his  departure  was  at  hand, 
and  he  knew  that  he  had  given  to  Timothy  a  pattern  of 
sound  words,  he  had  given  him  the  faith.  But  he  knew 
that  Timothy  would  die  after  a  while,  and  what  then? 
"And  the  things  which  thou  hast  heard  from  me  among 
many  witnesses,  the  same  commit  thou  to  faithful  men, 
who  shall  be  able  to  teach  others  also."  That  is  the 
way  the  gospel  is  handed  down. 

A  truly  sound  preacher  is  possessed  with  the  desire 
that  somebody  who  hears  him  will  receive  the  gospel  in 
full  from  him,  and  long  after  he  has  passed  away  will 
transmit  that  very  thing  to  somebody  else,  and  that  one 
in  turn  to  his  successor,  and  then  to  another,  and  just 
keep  it  going.  That  is  succession,  and  I  believe  in  the 
succession  of  the  past,  but  especially  in  the  succession 
of  the  present.  No  matter  what  we  believe  about  suc- 
cession back  yonder,  this  is  my  day  and  I  have  the  de- 
posit of  faith  and  the  injunction  is  on  me  to  transmit  it 
to  somebody  else.  I  am  more  concerned  about  present 
succession  than  in  spending  my  life  trying  to  prove  that 
there  was  one  way  back  yonder,  though  there  was  one 


A  FAITHFUL  MINISTER  OF  JESUS     153 

way  back  yonder,  too.  Remember  the  soldier-hymns: 
"Am  I  a  soldier  of  the  cross,"  and  "My  soul,  be  on  thy 
guard." 

Listen  to  Paul's  soldier  talk:  "Suffer  hardship  with 
me  as  a  good  soldier  of  Christ  Jesus."  Soldiers  do  not 
sleep  in  the  parlor  (by  the  way,  that  is  the  worst  room 
in  the  place  to  sleep  in)  ;  he  does  not  attend  many  ban- 
quets. Sometimes  we  see  him  with  just  one  shoe,  and 
sometimes  none.  Sometimes  he  has  to  stand  guard  all 
night,  and  sometimes  "double  quick."  Sometimes  he  is 
cold  and  sometimes  hot.  Sometimes  he  is  hungry  and 
sometimes  gorged.  The  army  that  can  endure  such  hard- 
ships is  going  to  win. 

The  fashion-soldiers  in  times  of  peace,  with  their  hur- 
rahs, gorgeous  uniforms,  flags  flying,  drums  beating,  at- 
tending receptions,  making  speeches,  these  we  call  "holi- 
day soldiers;"  but  the  soldier  who  goes  into  the  fight 
when  the  command,  "charge!"  is  given,  never  stops  to 
consider  the  wisdom  in  it,  but  storms  the  fortress  crowned 
with  belching  artillery  and  bristling  bayonets,  is  the  real 
soldier. 

"No  soldier  on  service  entangleth  himself  in  the  affairs 
of  this  life ;  that  he  may  please  him  who  enrolled  him  as 
a  soldier."  When  a  man  enlists  he  is  on  service  as  a 
soldier.  He  cannot  go  to  the  exchange  to  gamble  ;  cannot 
go  to  the  farm  to  make  a  crop ;  he  cannot  entangle  him- 
self with  the  affairs  of  this  Hfe;  he  is  committed  to  a 
special  line  of  duty.  "Now,  Timothy,  you  are  a  soldier 
on  duty;  beware  of  entangling  alliances." 

I  knew  one  preacher  who  ran  fifteen  kinds  of  secular 
businesses,  and  was  then  surprised  that  he  was  not  equal 
to  Paul  as  a  preacher!  He  had  that  many  irons  in  the 
fire.  I  would  advise  the  preacher  not  to  try  to  ride,  at 
the  same  time,  two  horses  going  in  opposite  directions. 


154  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

But  that  is  as  easy  as  it  is  for  a  preacher  to  entangle 
himself  with  the  affairs  of  this  world.  If  he  makes  a 
good  deal  of  money,  he  will  take  the  sore  throat,  and 
every  time  one  sees  him  he  will  explain  how  he  had  to 
quit  preaching  on  account  of  his  voice  failing;  that  his 
physicians  advised  him  to  stop. 

But  let  a  preacher  be  nearly  barefooted,  with  not 
much  of  this  world's  goods,  and  with  the  fire  burning  in 
his  heart  that  he  must  preach,  and  he  will  preach.  But 
if  he  is  able  to  go  in  a  coach  and  six,  he  always  says, 
"Put  up  some  of  the  other  brethren." 

I  knew  one  preacher  who  was  doing  well  as  a  pastor 
until  a  rich  man  called  him  to  be  his  private  secretary. 
Since  then  he  has  quit  preaching,  and  is  now  only  a 
millionaire. 

"And  if  also  a  man  contend  in  the  games,  he  is  not 
crowned  except  that  he  contend  lawfully."  Every  man 
must  conform  to  the  law  relating  to  the  line  in  which 
he  is  engaged.  If  he  is  a  farmer  he  must  be  ready  to 
go  to  work  just  as  the  sun  rises.  There  are  some  other 
occupations  that  do  not  call  for  such  early  rising.  But 
whatever  his  line  of  work,  he  must  conform  to  the  laws 
governing  it. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  the  force  of  "therefore"  in  verse  8? 

2.  How   does   Paul   ilUistrate   here? 

3.  What  great  text  follows,  and  what  the  meaning  of  "Abol- 
ished  death?" 

4.  Illustrate  by  Canaan  and  Egypt;  also  by  the  case  of  the 
Methodist  Bishop. 

5.  What  the  bearing  of  this  on  Timothy's  case? 

6.  What  the  meaning  of   "life"  here?     Illustrate. 

7.  What  the  meaning  of  "immortality?" 

8.  What  effect  should  the  teaching  of  this  text  have  on  a 
child  of  God? 

9.  Distinguish  between  the  meanings  of  the  words,  "preacher, 
apostle,  and  teacher." 


A  FAITHFUL  MINISTER  OF  JESUS     155 

10.  What  are  some  causes  for  shame,  and  what  not  a  cause 
for  shame? 

11.  What  the  relation  of  faith  to  knowledge? 

12.  What  kind  of  knowledge  brings  salvation? 

13.  What  had  Paul  committed  to  Jesus  Christ,  and  what  his 
confidence? 

14.  What  the  meaning  of  "pattern  of  sound  words?"     Illus- 
trate. 

15.  What  God's  method  of  preserving  the  truth  and  keeping 
it   always   before   men? 

16.  What  was  Paul's  idea  of  a  good  soldier  of  Jesus  Christ? 

17.  What  general  principle  cited  here  by  Paul? 


XIII 

ILLUSTRATIONS  OF  A  FAITHFUL  MINISTER 
Scripture:   II  Tim,  2:6-26 

THIS  section  includes  II  Tim.  2.  In  the  preceding 
chapter  we  discussed  somewhat  the  first  five 
verses  of  this  chapter,  but  in  order  to  a  full  un- 
derstanding of  the  connection  we  now  glance  at  the  whole 
chapter. 

The  first  question  I  propound  is  this :  What  the  gospel 
provision  for  the  transmission  of  the  correct  teaching? 
The  answer  to  that  question  is  this  (2:2):  "And  the 
things  which  thou  hast  heard  from  me  among  many 
witnesses,  the  same  commit  thou  to  faithful  men,  who 
shall  be  able  to  teach  others  also."  Evidently  the  gospel 
contemplates  a  succession  of  the  gospel  ministry  from 
the  days  of  Christ  to  the  end  of  the  world.  What  Christ 
gives  to  Paul,  Paul  gives  to  the  churches  and  commits 
to  the  preachers,  and  charges  the  churches  and  the 
preachers  to  commit  that  same  thing,  without  variation, 
to  faithful  men  coming  after,  that  they  in  their  turn 
may  teach  others.  It  is  not  my  intention  to  show  that 
there  has  been,  historically,  such  a  succession  of  churches 
and  gospel  preachers.  I  think  there  has  been  such  suc- 
cession, but  I  think  it  would  be  very  difficult  to  prove  it 
according  to  human  history,  if  for  no  other  reason,  be- 
cause so  very  large  a  part  of  that  history  was  written 
by  the  enemies  of  evangelical  Christianity.    Particularly 

156 


OF  A  FAITHFUL  MINISTRY  157 

in  the  dark  ages,  those  faithful  to  ApostoHc  doctrines 
were  so  hunted  and  persecuted  they  had  no  opportunity 
to  preserve  records.  But  we  do  see  faithful  churches 
and  faithful  preachers  now,  and  every  one  would  be 
able  to  say,  as  far  as  his  own  knowledge  goes,  it  was 
transmitted  to  him.  I  don't  suppose  that  anybody  ever 
originated  it.  From  this  day  back  to  Christ,  in  some 
way,  by  some  faithful  preacher  or  other,  or  by  some 
faithful  church,  the  truth  has  been  handed  down.  That 
is  the  answer  to  that  first  question. 

The  second  question  is :  What  is  the  first  metaphor, 
or  figure,  by  which  the  apostle  illustrates  the  faithful 
minister?  The  answer  to  that  is  to  be  found  in  the 
third  and  fourth  verses :  "Suffer  hardships  with  me, 
as  a  good  soldier  of  Christ  Jesus.  No  soldier  on 
service  entangleth  himself  with  the  affairs  of  this  life, 
that  he  may  please  him  who  enlisted  him  as  a 
soldier." 

In  this  illustration,  or  metaphor,  the  Christian  is  com- 
pared to  a  soldier,  a  regularly  enlisted  soldier,  and  as  a 
soldier  gives  up  his  private  business,  places  his  whole 
time  and  his  entire  service  under  the  direction  of  the 
power  that  enlisted  him,  so  the  Christian  preacher  should 
not  entangle  himself  with  the  affairs  of  this  world.  As 
a  faithful  soldier  has  no  time  to  run  a  farm,  or  be  a 
merchant,  or  be  a  banker,  or  to  follow  any  other  kind  of 
business,  so  it  was  certainly  the  purpose  of  our  Lord 
that  the  preacher  should  make  preaching  his  life's 
business. 

On  that  similitude  of  the  Christian  as  a  soldier,  much 
of  Bunyan's  "Pilgrim's  Progress"  is  founded,  using  that 
chapter  in  Ephesians  about  putting  on  the  helmet,  the 
breast-plate,  the  girdle,  the  sandals,  the  shield,  the  sword. 
The  Christian  is  contemplated  as  waging  warfare.    Paul 


158  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

says  of  himself  in  this  letter,  "I  have   fought  a  good 
fight."     From  that  idea  come  some  of  our  best  hymns: 


"Am  I  a  soldier  of  the  cross, 

A  follower  of  the  Lamb? 
And  shall  I  fear  to  own  His  cause, 

Or  blush  to  speak  His  name? 
Must  I  be  carried  to  the  skies 

On  flowery  beds  of  ease, 
While  others  fought  to  win  the  prize. 

And  sailed  through  bloody  seas?" 


What  the  second  metaphor,  or  illustration  of  the  faith- 
ful preacher  ?  That  is  found  in  the  5th  verse :  "And  if 
also  a  man  contend  in  the  games,  he  is  not  crowned 
except  he  contend  lawfully."  References  to  the  games 
in  Paul's  letters  are  so  abundant,  we  cannot  interpret  him 
without  a  knowledge  of  them. 

The  principal  games  in  Greece  were  called  the  Olympic 
games.  These  games  were  held  on  the  plain  of  Olympia, 
on  the  river  Alpheus.  The  isthmus  of  Corinth  connects 
upper  and  lower  Greece.  The  lower  part  is  called  the 
Peloponnesus,  which  is  almost  an  island.  In  the  western 
part  of  the  Peloponnesus  is  the  river  Alpheus.  On  the 
right  bank  of  that  river  lies  a  level  plain.  In  that  plain 
is  a  grove  sacred  to  Jupiter,  and  in  that  grove  is  a  mar- 
velous temple.  In  that  temple  was  one  of  the  seven 
wonders  of  the  ancient  world — a  colossal  statue  of  Jupi- 
ter Olympus,  done  in  gold  and  ivory,  by  Phidias,  one  of 
the  greatest  of  the  Greek  sculptors.  Then  there  was 
the  statue  to  Minerva  overlooking  Athens.  She  was  the 
patron  Goddess  of  the  city  and  so  here  this  gigantic 
statue,  made  of  ivory  and  gold,  represented  the  patron 
of  the  Olympic  games.  These  famous  games  were  held 
from  'j'jd  B.  c.  to  394  a.  d. — over  a  thousand  years.  They 
were  discontinued  by  an  edict  of  a  Christian  emperor  of 


OF  A  FAITHFUL  MINISTRY  159 

Rome — Theodosius,  but  for  that  thousand  years  they 
attracted  the  attention  of  the  world. 

These  games  were  held  every  four  years — the  first 
full  moon  after  the  summer  <^olstice.  From  them  chro- 
nology was  reckoned  for  th^  Greek  world.  The  first 
Olympiad  was  776  b.  c,  the  second  four  years  later ;  so 
by  four-year  periods  they  continued  until  their  aboli- 
tion. Pagan  Rome  reckoned  from  the  building  of  their 
city,  until  the  new  epoch  of  Christ's  birth  superseded 
both. 

Commencing  b.  c.  776,  for  one  or  two  Olympiads  these 
games  were  foot  races  only.  Soon  after  were  added 
quoit  and  javelin  throwing,  wrestling,  boxing,  leaping, 
and  still  later  chariot  races.  A  hippodrome  was  built 
covering  a  circuit  of  2,400  feet.  The  chariots  had  to 
drive  around  that  circle  twelve  times,  making  a  five-mile 
race.  In  "Ben  Hur"  there  is  a  brilliant  description  of 
the  chariot  race.  In  the  Greek  games  were  no  combats 
with  weapons,  no  gladiators,  no  fights  with  lions.  The 
Romans  added  these  bloody  contests. 

That  the  whole  Greek  race  might  attend  the  Olympic 
games,  a  truce  was  established  so  there  would  be  no  war 
anywhere  between  the  petty  states  while  the  Olympic 
games  were  being  played.  No  State  was  allowed  to  send 
an  armed  man  up  to  these  games.  It  was  a  time  of 
peace  and  festivity.  The  general  and  peaceful  gathering 
of  all  the  petty  Greek  states  at  the  Olympic  games  gave 
them  the  name  "panegyris"  as  opposed  to  each  particular 
"ecclesia."  This  distinction  Paul  utilizes  in  the  letter 
to  the  Hebrews.  The  general  festive  assembly  of  all 
the  saints  when  warfare  is  over,  the  eternal  feast  in  the 
presence  of  God. 

Now  let  us  consider  verse  5 :  "And  if  a  man  contend 
in  the  games,  he  is  not  crowned  except  he  contend  law- 


160  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

fully."  That  brings  us  to  the  rules  of  the  games.  In  the 
first  place,  they  were  open  to  all  classes  of  competitors. 
Whatever  might  be  the  home  distinction  between  the 
plutocrat  and  the  poor  man,  at  the  Olympic  games  they 
were  on  a  dead-level.  It  was  not  how  rich  is  the  man, 
nor  how  illustrious,  but  can  he  now  as  a  man  win  this 
athletic  contest? 

The  second  rule  was  that  he  must  be  of  pure  Greek 
descent.  A  mixed  blood  could  not  contend.  He  must 
make  proof  of  that  before  the  judges. 

The  third  was  that  he  must  have  had  ten  solid  months 
of  preparation  under  competent  coaches.  After  that  ten 
months  of  training  he  must  give  one  more  month  to 
exercise.  No  man,  whatever  his  wealth  or  social  status, 
could  compete  without  this  thorough  training  and  exer- 
cise on  the  field  itself.  Mark  the  bearing  of  this  on 
the  training  of  preachers,  if  you  please,  because  this  is 
a  preacher-illustration. 

The  next  rule  was  that  he,  and  every  member  of  his 
family,  must  take  an  oath  that  he  would  observe  the 
rules  of  the  games,  that  he  would  not  play  foul.  His 
own  father  or  brother  must  take  the  oath  that  he  would 
play  fair.  If  he  played  foul  in  one  of  these  games  he 
was  judged  a  degraded  man  and  must  pay  a  heavy  fine. 
All  over  the  grove  were  seen  remarkable  works  of  art 
paid  for  out  of  the  fines  assessed  on  men  who  would 
not  play  fair.  Hence  we  have  in  our  times  the  proverb : 
"Play  the  game  according  to  the  rules." 

The  next  rule  was  that  no  form  of  bribery  should  be 
used,  either  to  bribe  a  judge,  or  to  bribe  a  competitor, 
paying  him  so  much  money  to  let  them  win.  Whoever 
offered  and  whoever  took  a  bribe  were  disgraced. 

The  next  rule  was  that  the  crown  awarded  to  the  victor 
must  have  no  intrinsic  value.     They  wanted  no  financial 


OF  A  FAITHFUL  MINISTRY  161 

incentive.  Honor  and  glory — not  gold  and  jewels — must 
be  the  incentive. 

The  next  rule  was :  No  women  were  ever  permitted  to 
be  present.  In  all  of  my  readings  I  do  not  remember  of 
but  one  woman  being  present  at  these  games.  A  woman 
might  enter  a  chariot  in  competition,  but  some  male 
friend  must  drive  the  chariot. 

The  next  rule  was  that  this  competitor,  having  shown 
that  he  was  born  a  pure  Greek,  must  also  show  that  he 
had  never  been  disfranchised,  that  he  had  never  been 
guilty  of  a  sacrilege,  like  robbing  a  temple  or  anything 
of  that  kind.    These  were  the  rules. 

Let  us  see  again :  "And  if  a  man  contend  in  the  games, 
he  is  not  crowned  except  he  contend  lawfully."  He 
must  observe  every  regulation,  and  his  crown  of  victory 
was  a  wreath.  In  order  to  deepen  the  interest  in  those 
Panegyric  assemblies,  the  great  poets  were  here  accus- 
tomed to  recite  their  poems,  and  the  great  sculptors  and 
painters  to  exhibit  their  masterpieces,  so  that  it  was 
somewhat  of  the  nature  of  a  fair.  They  could  sell  these 
poems,  or  those  pieces  of  sculpture  or  paintings.  After 
a  while  people  not  only  came  from  Greece  proper,  but 
from  all  the  colonies  of  Greece,  all  along  the  shores  of 
the  Mediterranean  Sea — wherever  in  the  world  the 
Greeks  had  a  city,  wherever  Alexander's  conquest  had 
extended,  the  Greeks  would  come  here  to  witness  or  to 
contend.  At  first  the  assembly  lasted  just  one  day.  Just 
think  of  what  it  would  cost  to  be  present  for  one  day ! 
Later  it  lasted  five  days.  It  was  a  glorious  time,  those 
five  days. 

Those  were  the  Olympic  games.  And  yet  we  must  see 
in  some  of  Paul's  writings  references  to  the  Isthmian 
games  near  Corinth  and  the  amphitheaters  of  Greek 
cities,  as  at  Ephesus.     Later  when  the  Roman  idea  dom- 


162  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

inated,  they  put  in  gladiators,  and  fights  with  lions.  They 
became  blood-crazed,  and  women  were  allowed  to  attend. 
When  gladiators  fought  until  covered  with  blood,  it  was 
at  the  option  of  the  crowd  to  indicate  whether  they 
wanted  the  combat  to  stop  without  death.  They  voted 
by  turning  their  thumbs  up  or  down ;  and  it  was  notice- 
able that  women  usually  voted  for  a  fight  to  the  death. 
So  are  they  merciless  in  the  Spanish  or  Mexican  bull 
fights.  But  all  these  bloody  combats  were  of  Roman 
origin.  Paul  may  have  spoken  literally  in  saying,  "I 
have  fought  with  wild  beasts  at  Ephesus." 

Now,  brother  preacher,  you  are  entering  a  race.  As 
Paul  says,  "Let  us  run  with  patience  the  race  that  is  set 
before  us."  You  will  not  receive  your  crown  if  you  do 
not  contend  lawfully — if  you  do  not  observe  the  rules  of 
Christ's  games.  As  they  must  be  of  pure  Greek  descent 
so  must  you  be  born  of  the  Spirit.  You  must  train,  you 
must  lay  aside  every  weight  and  the  sin  which  doth  so 
easily  beset  you.  You  must  fix  your  eye  upon  the  heav- 
enly crown,  not  of  fading  laurel  or  olive  bough,  but  the 
crown  which  Christ,  the  righteous  Lord,  will  give  to  us 
at  His  appearing.  Said  Paul:  "I  have  run  my  race  and 
finished  my  course,  and  henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for 
me  a  crown  which  Christ,  the  righteous  Judge,  will  give 
to  me."  It  is  laid  up  in  some  of  the  mansions  of  heaven, 
and  if  you  were  permitted  to  visit  heaven's  gallery  of 
waiting  crowns,  you  might  see  the  most  dazzling  crown 
ever  designed  for  human  brow.  That  is  Paul's.  When 
does  he  receive  that  crown?  When  Jesus  comes,  in  the 
presence  of  the  universe,  he  will  be  crowned  for  being 
faithful  to  the  game,  for  playing  the  game  according 
to  the  rules.  One  of  the  most  convincing  arguments  in 
the  whole  Bible  for  the  necessity  of  ministerial  training 
is  this  illustration  of  Paul  comparing  the  preacher's  prep- 


OF  A  FAITHFUL  MINISTRY  163 

aration  to  the  work  of  a  soldier  and  to  a  contender  in 
the  Olympic  games. 

The  next  illustration  or  metaphor  is  in  the  sixth  verse : 
"The  husbandman  that  laboreth  must  be  the  first  to  par- 
take of  the  fruits."  It  is  the  farmer  this  time.  First 
a  soldier,  then  a  contender  in  the  games,  now  a  farmer. 
What  about  his  work?  Whoever  does  the  work  must 
receive  first  pay.  No  matter  who  owns  the  land,  this 
man  who  did  the  plowing,  who  did  the  hoeing,  who  did 
the  planting  and  cultivating,  before  anybody  else  gets 
anything,  he  is  entitled  to  his  part.  What  a  fine  thought 
to  apply  to  political  economy :  not  to  let  the  man  who 
does  the  work  be  deprived  of  what  is  coming  to  him. 
Therefore,  they  who  preach  the  gospel  shall  live  of  the 
gospel.    The  laborer  is  worthy  of  his  hire. 

The    fourth    metaphor   or   illustration    is   covered   in 

verses  lo  to  12,  the  thought  culminating  in,  "If  we  suffer 

with  Him  we  shall  reign  with  Him,"  and  it  is  expressed 

in  these  words :  the  cross  before  the  crown.    We  do  not 

come  to  the  crown  first ;  we  go  by  the  way  of  the  cross. 

That  is  the  given  order.    What  Shylock  said  of  the  Jew 

is  true  of  the  Christian,  "Suflferance  is  the  badge  of  all 

our  tribe,"  and  we  must  sufifer  if  we  would  reign.     On 

that  point  we  have  some  magnificent  hymns.     One  of 

them  is: 

"Must  Jesus  bear  the  cross  alone 
And  all  the  world  go  free? 
No,  there's  a  cross  for  every  one, 
And  there's  a  cross  for  me." 

Or,  the  way  that  hymn  was  originally  written :  "Must 
Simon  bear  the  cross  alone."  On  the  way  to  Calvary, 
they  found  a  man  named  Simon  coming  in  from  the 
country,  and  when  Jesus  broke  down  they  compelled 
Simon  to  bear  His  cross  and  that  song  originally  read: 


164  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

"Must  Simon  bear  the  cross  alone  and  all  the  world  go 
free?" 

I  knew  a  preacher  who  once  invited  all  who  thought 
their  sufferings  beyond  their  strength,  more  than  they 
could  bear,  to  come  and  hear  him  preach  a  sermon. 
There  was  a  big  crowd  out,  and  it  was  a  burdened  crowd. 
He  took  this  text:  "If  we  suffer  with  Him  we  shall 
reign  with  Him,"  his  theme  being  the  cross  before  the 
crown.  He  drew  a  picture  of  the  pilgrim  who  bears 
the  cross.  "H  any  man  will  be  My  disciple,  let  him 
deny  himself  and  take  up  his  cross  daily  and  follow  Me." 
He  showed  how  the  disciple  from  a  child  must  bear  a 
heavy  cross,  and  how  at  times  he  stumbles  with  it,  groans 
under  it,  is  weary  of  it,  envies  people  who  have  no 
burden,  but  how  after  a  while,  bowed  down  with  the 
burden  of  the  cross  of  long  carrying,  with  trembling 
feet  he  comes  to  the  Jordan  of  death.  And  when  he 
gets  there  he  shouts  and  takes  his  cross,  as  Elijah  took 
his  mantle,  and  smites  the  river  of  death  with  it  and 
divides  the  river,  going  over  dry-shod,  leaving  his  cross 
behind  never  to  be  seen  any  more  forever,  and  goes  up 
to  his  waiting  crown.  So  it  pays  to  carry  the  cross  even 
that  long,  as  with  it  he  divides  the  river  of  death. 

Notice  in  the  loth  verse:  "Therefore  I  endure  all 
things  for  the  elect's  sake."  There  we  come  to  a  new 
motive.  "Why  do  you  endure  all  this  suffering,  Paul?" 
"Not  only  for  Christ's  sake,  but  for  the  elect's  sake.  I 
am  anxious  for  their  salvation.  If  I  can  reach  more  men 
by  suffering,  I  will  bear  it.  If  I  can  save  souls  by  my 
bleeding  wounds,  by  my  jangling  chains,  by  my  stripes, 
and  by  my  imprisonment — if  that  gives  me  more  power 
in  converting  men,  then  for  the  elect's  sake  I  will  bear  it." 

I  next  call  attention  to  a  great  theme  in  the  15th 
verse:  "Give  diligence  to  present  thyself  approved  unto 


OF  A  FAITHFUL  MINISTRY  165 

God,  a  workman  that  needeth  not  to  be  ashamed,  han- 
dling aright  the  word  of  truth."  What  a  commentary 
that  is  upon  the  necessity  of  ministerial  training.  Be 
careful  to  present  thyself  approved,  tested.  God  puts  us 
to  a  test,  and  we  are  to  endure  this  test,  and  we  should 
be  very  careful  that  we  are  approved  under  any  test  He 
may  propose.  "Handling  aright,"  or  as  a  good  rendering 
states  it,  "dividing  aright  the  word  of  truth."  I  have 
heard  many  sermons  on  "the  right  dividing  of  the  word 
of  truth."  The  idea  is  that  of  a  farmer  plowing  a 
straight  furrow,  not  crooked,  curved,  nor  zigzag.  I 
have  seen  in  a  great  field  men  plowing  a  straight  line  for 
a  mile — straight  as  an  arrow.  So,  when  we  come  to  the 
discussion  of  the  truth,  we  should  plow  a  straight  fur- 
row, divide  it  right,  handle  it  right.  We  should  not 
zigzag  around  among  words  as  if  we  were  trying  to 
flush  something,  but  go  straight  to  the  mark,  hew  to  the 
line,  and  if  we  are  tested  as  a  minister  of  God  we  can 
do  that.  Here  is  one  way  by  which  we  may  know  that 
we  are  plowing  a  straight  furrow :  If  we  put  on  some 
passage  an  interpretation  which  in  the  next  book  will 
run  up  against  a  wall,  or  strike  it,  that  furrow  won't  go 
clear  through  the  Bible  and  we  have  the  wrong  idea 
about  it.  If  we  have  the  right  idea  it  will  be  a  straight 
furrow  from  Genesis  to  Revelation.  It  will  be  according 
to  the  canon,  or  rule  of  the  truth. 

For  instance:  If  we  so  preach  election  that  we  knock 
over  some  other  doctrine ;  or  if  we  so  preach  on  human 
eflfort  as  to  plow  up  the  doctrines  of  election  and  pre- 
destination, then  we  have  not  plowed  a  straight  furrow. 
What  a  great  theme  for  ministerial  training! 

Now  let  us  consider  the  i8th  verse :  "Hymeneus  and 
Philetus,  men  who  concerning  the  truth  have  erred,  say- 
ing the  resurrection  is  past  already,  and  overthrow  the 


166  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

faith  of  some."  What  do  they  mean  by  saying  the 
resurrection  had  passed  already  ?  Mainly  this :  They 
argued  that  the  resurrection  of  the  body  that  dies  is 
foolishness,  and  that  what  is  meant  by  the  resurrection 
is  the  conversion  of  the  soul.  That  the  quickening  of 
the  soul  in  regeneration  is  the  only  resurrection.  Later 
this  idea  succeeded:  That  the  resurrection  is  when  the 
soul,  at  death,  escapes  from  the  body  which  held  it.  It 
has  no  more  use  for  the  body  than  a  butterfly  has  for  its 
cast-oflf  chrysalis  shell.  Paul  says  that  that  doctrine  eats 
like  a  cancer.  It  denies  the  salvation  of  the  body,  and 
thus  denies  the  real  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ.  Notice 
further  he  says  that  they  overthrow  the  faith  of  some. 
Does  this  mean  that  these  men  so  fell  away  from  grace 
as  to  be  lost  forever?  Let  us  look  at  the  next  verse: 
"Howbeit  the  firm  foundation  of  God  standeth,  having 
this  seal."  Here  were  men  who  professed  to  be  Chris- 
tians. Now  come  these  false  teachers  and  persuade 
them  to  abandon  the  true  teaching,  overthrowing  their 
faith.  Does  that  mean  apostasy  in  the  modern  sense  of 
the  word?  "The  foundation  of  God  standeth,  having 
this  seal."  What  is  the  seal?  The  seal  is  the  impress 
of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  on  every  seal  there  are  two  sur- 
faces, and  on  each  surface  is  an  inscription.  On  this 
seal  the  first  inscription  is:  "The  Lord  knoweth  them 
that  are  His."  The  Lord's  true  man  is  sealed,  and  the 
impress  on  one  side  of  the  seal  saith :  "The  Lord  know- 
eth them  that  are  His,"  whether  men  do  or  not,  God 
does.    Judas  was  not  sealed. 

Now  let  us  look  at  the  other  side  of  the  seal:  "And  let 
every  one  that  nameth  the  name  of  the  Lord  depart  from 
unrighteousness."  One  inscription  shows  God's  infalli- 
ble knowledge  of  their  salvation.  The  other  shows  that 
whom  God  saves  departs  from  iniquity.    These  are  the 


OF  A  FAITHFUL  MINISTRY  167 

two  inscriptions  on  the  seal.  Let  us  never  talk  about 
baptism  being  the  seal.  We  are  sealed  by  the  Holy 
Spirit,  and  that  seal  has  two  sides — two  different  im- 
pressions on  it.  First,  "The  Lord  knoweth  them  that 
are  His."  Second,  those  that  are  sealed  depart  from 
iniquity.  And  if  a  man  never  departs  from  iniquity, 
Jesus  will  say,  "I  never  knew  you." 

We  now  come  to  the  20th  verse:  "Now  in  a  great 
house  there  are  not  only  vessels  of  gold  and  of  silver, 
but  also  of  wood  and  of  earth ;  and  some  unto  honor, 
and  some  unto  dishonor.  If  a  man  therefore  purge 
himself  from  these,  he  shall  be  a  vessel  unto  honor,  sanc- 
tified, meet  for  the  Master's  use,  prepared  unto  every 
good  work."  In  every  great  house — that  is,  in  every 
great  congregation,  every  great  church — are  different 
vessels.  They  are  not  all  the  same  thing.  Some  are 
vessels  unto  dishonor,  some  unto  honor.  One  may  be 
compared  to  gold,  another  to  silver;  others  are  just 
wood,  inflammable,  and  will  perish  in  the  fire.  That  is 
what  is  meant  by  a  vessel  of  dishonor  in  the  church. 
Compare  I  Cor.  3: 12,  13.  But  though  a  man  be  a  false 
professor  while  in  the  church,  the  way  is  yet  open  for 
his  conversion.  If  he  will  purify  himself  from  that 
dishonor,  seek  purification  in  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ, 
he  shall  become  a  vessel  of  honor. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What    the    Gospel   provision    for    transmission    of   correct 
doctrine  and  what  does  this  necessarily  imply? 

2.  What  the  first  illustration  in  Chapter  II  to  show  ministerial 
fidelity,  and  what  the  particular  lesson  taught? 

3.  What   the   second   illustration   and    its   particular   lesson? 

4.  Cite    from    Paul's    writings    at    least    six    metaphors   based 
on  the  athletic  games  of  Ancient  Greece  and  Rome. 

5.  Give  an  account  of  the  Olympic  Games,  the  place  and  its 
celebrities,  what  the  time  interval  between  them,  how  long  did 


168  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES"^ 

the  festival  last,  how  long  the  period  of  their  observance,  how 
used  in  chronology,  when  and  by  whom  abolished? 

6.  What  the  games? 

7.  What  additions  to  the  Greek  games  made  by  the  Romans? 

8.  What  the  rules  of  the  Olympic  games? 

9.  What  the  bearing  of  the  illustration  on  the  necessity  of 
ministerial   training? 

10.  Name   another  distinguished  place   for   these  games? 

11.  What  other  arenas  for  these  games  in  all  great  Greek 
cities,  citing  one? 

12.  How  did  the  Greeks  provide  for  peace  between  the  petty 
warring  Greek  states   at  the  Olympic  games? 

13.  How  did  they  distinguish  in  name  between  this  general 
gathering  and  the  governing  body  in  a  particular  state  and  how 
does  Paul  use  and  apply  both  names? 

14.  What  the  crown  awarded,  why  not  of  intrinsic  value  and 
how   does    Paul    contrast  the   Christian's   crown? 

15.  When   is  the   Christian's   crown   awarded? 

16.  What  features  of  a  fair  characterized  the  Olympic  games? 

17.  What  Paul's  fourth  illustration  of  ministerial  fidelity  and 
in  what  phrase  do  we  embody  it? 

18.  Cite  the  hymn  based  on  this  illustration  and  how  did  it 
originally  read? 

19.  Give  some  account  of  the  preacher's  sermon  to  all  who 
felt  that  their  cross  was  too  heavy  and  how  did  it  end? 

20.  What  new  motive  does  Paul  introduce  in  Christian  suffer- 
ing and  how  do  you  apply  it? 

21.  Show  the  application  to  ministerial  training  in  the  great 
theme  in  2:15. 

22.  What  the  idea  in  "rightly  dividing"  or  "handling  aright" 
the  word  of  truth? 

23.  What  the  original  meaning  of  those  who  said :  "The 
resurrection  is  already  past?" 

24.  The  later  meaning? 

25.  How  does   Paul  characterize  the  heresy? 

26.  Expound  the  reference  to  the  seal  and  its  inscriptions? 

27.  Expound  the  passage  concerning  vessels  of  honor  and 
of  dishonor  in  a  great  house,  i.  e.,  (i)  What  the  meaning  of 
the  house?  (2)  Who  are  meant  by  vessels  of  honor?  (3)  By 
vessels  of  dishonor?  (4)  The  hope  held  out  to  vessels  of  dis- 
honor?   (s)  Compare  with  the  passage  in  I  Cor.  3, 


XIV 

CHARACTERISTICS  OF  THE  LAST  DAY 
Scripture:   II  Tim.  3:1-17 

WE  continue  the  discussion  of  the  second  letter  to 
Timothy  with  the  third  chapter.  The  apostle 
calls  attention  to  some  characteristics  of  the 
last  day,  just  as  he  did  in  the  fourth  chapter  of  his  first 
letter,  and  just  as  we  find  in  Peter's  second  letter. 
"Mockers  shall  come  with  mockery,  walking  after  their 
own  lusts."  I  do  not  know  in  any  literature  such  a 
description  of  the  character  of  man  as  given  here,  except 
that  by  the  same  author  in  Romans  i. 

What  does  Paul  mean  by  "last  days"?  The  phrase 
"last  day"  to  be  properly  expounded,  requires  a  whole 
chapter.  The  "last  days"  in  many  instances  means  gospel 
days,  but  in  the  case  immediately  before  us,  and  in  the 
parallel  passage  in  the  letter  to  the  Hebrews,  there  seems 
to  be  a  reference  to  the  closing  days  of  the  dispensation. 
He  does  not  mean  that  progressing  Christians  will  all 
be  that  way,  but  he  is  warning  against  a  class. 

We  have  them  with  us  now.  If  a  country  boy  were 
lifted  up  suddenly  and  put  into  the  atmosphere  that  sur- 
rounds what  is  called  the  higher  circle  in  Paris,  London, 
New  York,  or  Washington  City,  he  would  say,  "Last 
days !"  It  would  be  questionable  with  him  whether  any 
of  those  occupying  front  places  in  national  society  have 
any  character  at  all. 

Let  us  look  at  this  paragraph :  "Men  shall  be  lovers  of 

169 


170  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

self,  lovers  of  money,  boastful,  haughty,  railers,  diso- 
bedient to  parents,  unthankful,  unholy,  without  natural 
affection,  implacable,  slanderers,  without  self-control, 
fierce,  no  lovers  of  good,  traitors,  headstrong,  puffed  up, 
lovers  of  pleasure  rather  than  lovers  of  God ;  holding  a 
form  of  Godliness,  but  having  denied  the  power  thereof." 

The  surprising  thing  of  these  characteristics  is  that 
they  are  applied  to  church  members — men  that  have  a 
form  of  Godliness  but  deny  its  power.  We  now  some- 
times meet  with  a  heresy  affirming  the  power  of  Godli- 
ness, but  denying  its  form.  Such  heretics  do  not  want 
any  form  of  a  church  or  particular  ordinances,  and  lay 
great  stress  on  spirituality  and  internal  relation  with 
God.  But  he  commits  a  sin  who  denies  form  to  Godli- 
ness. It  is  an  old  question :  What  is  chaff  to  the  wheat  ? 
It  depends  upon  the  stage  of  the  wheat.  After  the  wheat 
is  threshed  the  chaff  is  nothing,  but  it  amounts  to  much 
until  the  wheat  matures.  It  is  the  form  which  protects 
and  shields  it.  And  we  must  have  a  form  of  Godliness 
in  order  to  Godliness  of  spirit.  But  when  we  insist  on 
having  form  only,  it  reminds  one  of  a  man  going  into  a 
field  during  the  last  great  drought  we  had  in  Texas. 
The  corn  looked  all  right,  good  large  ears,  but  when  he 
gathered  it  he  found  nothing  but  shucks.  Just  the  form. 
No  corn  was  there. 

What  I  want  to  impress  upon  the  reader  is  that  form 
is  essential  to  the  purpose  which  it  serves,  but  more 
important  than  form  is  the  inner  life.  There  is  an  inner 
man  and  an  outer  man.  We  cannot  safely  disregard 
the  outer  man.  We  may  say  that  we  will  live  spiritually, 
but  the  body  gets  cold,  it  gets  hungry,  it  has  to  be  clothed 
and  fed.  There  is  an  intimate  relation  between  the  body 
and  the  spirit.  A  Quaker  may  say,  "We  have  no  form 
of  baptism ;  we  beHeve  in  baptism  of  the  Spirit,  and  we 


THE  LAST  DAY  171 

dispense  with  all  externalities."  That  is  a  capital  mis- 
take, and  contrary  to  the  Bible,  but  this  mistake  which 
Paul  is  here  discussing  is  infinitely  worse.  They  held 
onto  the  form  and  left  out  altogether  the  heart  and 
power  of  religion. 

Romans  i :  28-32  resembles  this  passage  somewhat : 
"And  even  as  they  refused  to  have  God  in  their  knowl- 
edge, God  gave  them  up  unto  a  reprobate  mind,  to  do 
those  things  which  are  not  fitting;  being  filled  with  un- 
righteousness, wickedness,  covetousness,  maliciousness; 
full  of  envy,  murder,  strife,  deceit,  malignity;  whisper- 
ers, backbiters,  hateful  to  God,  insolent,  haughty,  boast- 
ful, inventors  of  evil  things,  disobedient  to  parents,  with- 
out understanding,  covenant-breakers,  without  natural 
affection,  unmerciful,  etc." 

It  is  easy  to  see  how  that  parallels  with  the  one  we 
are  considering.  The  sin  of  the  Timothy  passage  is 
more  heinous,  for  these  are  professed  Christians  that 
have  these  characteristics.  Claiming  to  be  Christians, 
and  yet  with  such  characteristics  as  these!  There  are 
times  of  spiritual  power  and  strict  discipline  when  people 
are  not  allowed  to  retain  the  form  of  religion,  when 
their  lives  are  at  variance  with  the  form.  But  at  times 
of  spiritual  decadence  and  relaxation  of  discipline,  any 
kind  of  a  life  will  be  tolerated  if  only  the  externals  of 
religion  are  maintained. 

Paul's  one  theme  in  this  letter  is  an  exhortation  to  be 
a  faithful  preacher.  He  is  calling  Timothy's  attention 
to  his  necessity  of  being  faithful  in  view  of  a  class  of 
men  who  would  come  to  the  front.  He  says,  "turn  away 
from  these  men,"  and  gives  a  description  of  them  and 
their  propagandism.  It  must  be  evident  to  any  one 
who  has  carefully  studied  the  letters  to  the  Colossians 
and  Ephesians,  that  this  gnosticism  had  a  method  of 


172  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

propagandism  just  the  opposite  of  the  gospel's.  The 
gospel  is  open  and  above-board.  A  man  gets  the  biggest 
audience  he  can,  proclaims  from  house-tops  to  all  classes 
of  men  without  any  distinction,  the  very  quintessence 
of  the  gospel.  Contrary  to  that,  the  prevalent  Gnostics 
evaded  public  presentation  to  crowds.  They  always 
wanted  to  address  privately  single  individuals  or  single 
households,  and  they  are  represented  in  this  letter,  and 
in  all  other  letters  on  the  subject,  as  people  who  crept 
privately  into  the  church,  crept  privately  into  the  home, 
under  the  disguise  of  a  form  of  religion.  Retaining 
their  membership  in  the  church,  they  would  go  around 
and  talk  about  a  select  few,  making  a  distinction  in 
classes.  Only  the  cultured  few  were  to  be  initiated  into 
the  mysteries  of  this  new  philosophy. 

Paul  says,  "For  of  these  are  they  that  creep  into 
houses  and  take  captive  silly  women."  The  word  "silly" 
is  not  the  best  translation.  It  means  "little  women."  Not 
little  in  the  sense  of  Miss  Alcott,  who  wrote  a  most 
engaging  book  called  "Little  Women";  young  people 
who  can  be  trained  to  have  the  graces  of  older  persons ; 
not  in  that  sense,  but  in  the  moral  sense.  They  take 
captive  women  with  little  souls.  There  are  great  men 
and  little  men ;  great  women  and  little  women — some  of 
them  infinitesimally  small.  They  seem  to  have  no  high 
nature ;  it  is  all  low.  They  are  on  the  plane  of  brute- 
beasts.  Their  pleasures  are  sensual — pleasures  that  ap- 
peal to  the  animal  nature.  It  may  be  the  pleasure  of 
eating  like  the  lion  or  tiger,  gorging  himself  on  blood. 
So  a  glutton  lives  to  eat.  It  may  be  in  the  direction  of 
gossip,  slander,  or  lasciviousness.  That  is  what  Paul 
calls  "little" ;  little  in  the  sense  that  it  keeps  down  to  the 
animal  part  of  man. 

When   Henry  Ward   Beecher,  rather  upon  his  own 


THE  LAST  DAY  173 

solicitation  than  upon  accusation,  before  an  assembly  of 
the  Congregationalists  was  being  catechised  as  to  his  de- 
parture from  the  faith,  a  question  was  put  to  him :  "Do 
you  believe  in  the  necessity  of  regeneration  by  the  Holy 
Spirit?"  he  said,  "Unquestionably."  The  second  ques- 
tion :  "Do  you  believe  that  this  necessity  arises  from  the 
sins  each  man  himself  commits  or  from  the  depravity  of 
his  nature  ?"  That  was  putting  him  in  a  close  place.  He 
evaded  it  most  adroitly — I  never  knew  any  man  to  more 
adroitly  evade  a  question:  "I  beheve,"  said  he,  "a  man 
needs  regeneration  because  he  is  an  animal."  That  is 
an  exceedingly  acute  thought,  and  much  can  be  said 
about  it.  For  instance,  when  man  was  originally  made 
part  of  him  was  made  out  of  the  dust  of  the  earth,  and 
God  Himself  provided  the  tree  of  life  that  the  mortality 
should  be  eliminated  from  that  body,  arid  it  should  be- 
come an  immortal  body.  To  evade  the  doctrine  of  de- 
pravity, Beecher  took  the  position  that  regeneration 
should  be  predicated  upon  the  fact  that  man  is  an  animal 
— that  is,  has  a  lower  nature. 

In  the  passage  before  us  Paul  is  bringing  out  a  class 
of  women — "little  women." 

Any  woman  is  little  who  is  satisfied  with  the  mere 
round  of  social  pleasures,  loving  pleasure  more  than  God; 
zvho  is  satisfied  to  reign  in  merely  fashionable  circles, 
who  never  looks  up,  never  thinks  of  zvhat  is  due  God. 

In  Paul's  sense  that  is  a  little  woman. 

He  is  about  to  show  how  irreligious  teachers  retain 
the  form.  He  says  they  are  "ever  learning  and  never 
able  to  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth."  They 
claim  to  have  a  gnosis,  a  knowledge  that  is  a  finality, 
and  yet  they  never  come  to  any  definite  result.  What  is 
gnosis  to  them  one  year  may  be  exploded  in  the  succeed- 
ing year.    The  revealed  word  of  God  is  a  fixed  standard. 


174  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

It  is  not  different  in  one  country  from  what  it  is  in  an- 
other country ;  not  different  in  one  age  from  what  it  is 
in  another  age.  The  Ten  Commandments  are  applicable 
to  the  world,  the  world  over.  But  where  people  set  up 
a  subjective  standard  of  knowledge,  the  standard  changes 
with  the  individuals.  Even  one  man  may  have  a  stand- 
ard one  week  which  he  would  not  acknowledge  the  next 
week.  All  subjective  knowledge  is  ever  knowing  and 
never  knowing.  This  applies  to  all  human  philosophies 
whether  by  Kant,  Aristotle,  Epicurus,  or  Socrates.  Un- 
aided human  wisdom  cannot  evolve  a  definite  knowledge 
or  determine  a  fixed  standard.  Says  Paul,  "They  are 
ever  knowing,  and  ever  unable  to  come  to  the  knowledge 
of  the  truth."  The  world  by  its  science  and  wisdom 
could  never  find  out  God. 

He  cites  a  case :  "Even  as  Jannes  and  Jambres  with- 
stood Moses,  so  do  these  also  withstand  the  truth."  Here 
is  the  only  place  in  the  Bible  where  we  get  the  names 
of  the  magicians  who  simulated  the  first  miracles 
wrought  by  Moses.  The  question  arises :  Where  did 
Paul  get  the  names?     I  answer:  By  inspiration. 

There  was  a  prevalent  philosophy  in  Egypt  in  the 
days  of  Moses  much  like  this  Gnostic  philosophy,  a  phi- 
losophy that  attempted  to  account  for  the  creation  of 
things ;  a  philosophy  that  attempted  to  account  for  sin 
and  gave  its  remedy ;  a  philosophy  that  divided  the  race 
into  sharply  distinguished  classes,  only  a  select  few  to 
be  initiated  into  the  mysteries,  and  yet  a  philosophy 
that  had  no  moral  influence  over  their  lives.  A  man 
could  be  at  the  very  head  of  the  mysteries  in  Egypt,  and 
at  the  same  time  be  as  corrupt  morally  as  hell  itself. 
Just  as  one  could  be  an  expert  in  wisdom  at  Corinth, 
and  yet  be  utterly  corrupt  in  the  sight  of  God :  "Men 
corrupt  in  mind  and  reprobate  concerning  the  faith." 


THE  LAST  DAY  175 

How  squarely  against  that  Paul  puts  himself,  as  we 
have  seen  before,  and  will  see  again  before  we  are 
through  with  the  letter.  As  an  example,  he  denies  having 
any  such  record  as  that ;  he  appeals  to  Timothy's  knowl- 
edge of  him :  "Thou  didst  follow  my  teaching,  conduct, 
purpose,  faith,  long-suffering,  love,  patience,  persecu- 
tions, sufferings,  what  things  befell  me  at  Antioch,  at 
Iconium,  at  Lystra;  what  persecutions  I  endured,  and 
out  of  them  all  the  Lord  delivered  me."  "There  is  my 
life  as  a  teacher  of  the  Christian  religion.  It  has  been  a 
life  of  great  suffering,  persecution,  patience,  endurance. 
It  has  not  been  corrupt,  beastly,  animal,  devilish."  He 
puts  that  right  over  against  the  life  of  these  other 
teachers. 

It  is  the  easiest  thing  in  the  world,  as  well  as  the  most 
flattering  to  the  human  mind,  to  devise  beautiful  theories, 
and  we  are  amazed  to  find  that  some  theories  as  beau- 
tiful as  the  rainbow  come  from  the  lips  of  men  and 
women  who  are  as  corrupt  as  the  pit.  They  are  meant 
just  for  theories,  not  to  dominate  life.  I  once  saw  a 
young  lady  crying  over  a  most  beautiful  tribute  to  purity 
in  a  novel.  She  said  the  author  must  have  been  one  of 
the  best  men  in  the  world.  She  was  surprised  to  learn 
that  he  was  utterly  corrupt  in  his  own  life.  Anybody 
can  fix  up  a  thing  like  that  on  paper,  but  that  does  not 
argue  internal  purity. 

Take  this  law  in  verse  13:  "Evil  men  and  impostors 
shall  wax  worse  and  worse,  deceiving  and  being  de- 
ceived." There  is  an  awful  trend  from  which  no  man 
can  escape,  any  more  than  he  can  escape  from  the  suc- 
tion above  the  Niagara  Falls.  A  man  who  lives  an 
animal  life,  a  life  of  evil  desire,  a  life  of  slimy  imagina- 
tion, a  life  of  unholy  thoughts,  is  going  down  just  as 
certain  as  a  boat  without  oars  or  help  will  go  down  when 


176  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

it  strikes  the  current  of  the  Niagara,  or  as  a  boat  when 
it  strikes  the  circle  of  the  maelstrom.  It  may  seem  that 
the  man  is  holding  his  own,  but  every  circle  he  makes, 
he  goes  deeper,  deeper,  deeper,  and  at  last  he  goes  under. 
That  is  the  law  inexorable.  They  wax  worse  and  worse. 
It  is  another  law  that  there  is  a  tendency  in  habit  to 
crystalize  into  character.  In  other  words,  to  attain  after 
a  while  the  fixedness  of  type.  When  things  get  to  that 
stage  they  are  irreformable. 

Paul  now  makes  a  most  pathetic  appeal :  "Timothy, 
do  you  remember  from  whom  you  learned  the  standard 
that  you  are  being  guided  by?  Do  you  remember  your 
old  grandmother  Lois,  your  mother  Eunice ;  that  you 
from  a  child  were  instructed  in  the  Holy  Scriptures 
which  are  able  to  make  one  wise  unto  salvation?  Do 
you  remember  the  time  the  apostle  came  to  your  home 
and  held  up  Christ  and  Him  crucified  as  your  Savior 
from  sin,  and  you  accepted  Him?"  Now,  what  was 
the  standard  held  up?  It  is  expressed  in  the  Greek: 
"hiera  grammata" — the  Holy  Scriptures.  That  is  not 
subjective  knowledge;  we  do  not  evolve  that  out  of  our 
own  consciousness. 

The  question  arises :  What  Holy  Scriptures  ?  It  means 
the  sacred  books  put  into  the  hands  of  the  Jewish  people, 
the  Holy  Scriptures  which  were  in  the  hands  of  Christ. 
In  other  words,  the  books  of  the  Old  Testament,  just 
as  we  have  them,  clearly  defined.  Now  comes  a  declara- 
tion: Having  referred  to  these  scriptures  collectively, 
"hiera  grammata,"  he  declares  concerning  them  distribu- 
tively :  "pasa  graphe" ;  every  one  of  these  sacred  scrip- 
tures is  "theopneustos,"  God-inspired,  and  is  profitable 
for  teaching,  conviction,  correction,  instruction  in  right- 
eousness, that  the  man  of  God  may  be  perfect,  thoroughly 
equipped  for  every  good  work.    This  makes  a  fixed  and 


THE  LAST  DAY  177 

perfect  standard.  From  inspiration  comes  power.  First, 
these  scriptures  are  able  to  make  one  wise  unto  salva- 
tion. They  are  profitable  for  teaching  what  a  man  ought 
to  believe  and  what  a  man  ought  to  do. 

The  next  point  is,  they  are  profitable  for  reproof,  for 
convicting  of  error.  Not  only  to  teach  what  to  believe 
and  to  do,  but  when  one  goes  wrong  in  belief  or  in  life, 
these  scriptures  will  convict  him  of  error.  Next:  "for 
correction."  That  means  that  having  shown  wherein  one 
has  believed  wrong  or  done  wrong,  it  will  tell  him  how 
to  correct  that  wrong. 

"For  instruction,"  or  discipline,  "in  righteousness." 
There  the  word  "instruction"  has  the  idea  of  training, 
disciplining.  We  see  a  woman  put  out  a  bulb  or  plant 
a  seed.  Even  before  it  comes  up  she  has  a  purpose  in 
her  mind  and  fixes  a  frame  over  it.  When  the  vine 
begins  to  grow  she  trains  it  to  run  on  that  frame,  and 
when  it  wants  to  run  off  at  a  tangent,  she  gently  at- 
taches it  to  the  frame  and  trains  it,  trains  it,  trains  it, 
until  it  circles  all  around  her  window.  That  is  the  power 
of  training.  These  God-inspired  scriptures  are  profitable 
in  training  one  in  doing  right.  A  raw  recruit  does  not 
know  whether  to  commence  buttoning  his  coat  at  the 
top  or  bottom,  does  not  know  how  to  "present  arms," 
"order  arms,"  "right  shoulder,"  "shift  arms,"  "charge 
bayonets" ;  does  not  know  how  to  keep  step.  He  has  to 
be  trained.  He  is  turned  over  to  an  experienced  drill- 
sergeant.  After  he  is  trained  as  a  unit,  he  is  then 
trained  as  a  member  of  a  squad,  then  of  a  company, 
then  of  a  battalion,  then  of  a  brigade,  then  of  a  division, 
so  that  he  not  only  knows  what  to  do  from  a  military 
point  of  view,  but  he  knows  exactly  where  his  place  is 
when  the  trumpet  calls  to  arms. 

"In  order  that  the  man  of  God  may  be  complete,  fur- 


178  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

nished  completely  unto  every  good  work."  The  sum  and 
substance  of  the  teaching  of  the  word  of  God  is  that 
doctrine  must  be  transmuted  into  life.  We  must  not 
only  bloom,  but  bring  forth  fruit.  Every  tree  that  bring- 
eth  not  forth  good  fruit  shall  be  hewn  down  and  thrown 
into  the  fire.  Herein  is  the  supreme  difference,  broad 
as  the  ocean  and  deep  as  eternity,  between  the  Christian 
system  of  religion  and  other  systems  of  religion.  It  is 
the  effect  on  life,  bringing  men  nearer  to  God. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  the  meaning  of  "last  days"  in  3:1? 

2.  What  the  present  indications  as  to  the   fulfillment? 

3.  Cite  a  passage  similar  to  this  third  chapter  of  II  Timothy? 

4.  Why  is  Paul's  description  of  men  here  more  terrible  than 
his  description  of  the  heathen  in  the  first  chapter  of  Romans? 

5.  What  the   relation   of   "form"  to   "godliness?"     Illustrate. 
Which   the    more    important?      Illustrate. 

6.  What  elements  of  Gnosticism  are  here  condemned? 

7.  What  the  meaning  of  "silly  women?" 

8.  What  was  Henry  Ward  Beecher's  position  on  the  necessity 
of  regeneration  ? 

9.  Contrast  the  gnosis  of  the  teachers  here  referred  to  with 
revelation  as  a  standard. 

10.  What  is  characteristic  of  all  subjective  knowledge? 

11.  What   flash-light   here   on    Old   Testament  history? 

12.  What  the  Egyptian  mysteries? 

13.  What  moral  influence  on  its  subjects? 

14.  Does   it    require   purity   of    character   to    devise   beautiful 
theories?     Illustrate. 

15.  What  law  stated  in  verse  13? 

16.  What  pathetic  appeal  in  verses   14  and   15? 

17.  Why  is  it  better  to  be  trained  in  right  ways  from  child- 
hood than  to  sow  wild  oats? 

18.  What  the  "sacred  writings"  in  verse  15? 

19.  What  the  meaning  of  "every  scripture"  in  verse  16? 

20.  What  the  value  of  verses  16  and  17? 


XV 
PAUL'S  FINAL  WORD 
Scripture:   II  Tim.  4:1-22 

THIS  chapter  concludes  the  second  letter  to  Tim- 
othy. We  commence  with  the  fourth  chapter. 
This  chapter  is  one  of  unexampled  solemnity. 
All  the  circumstances  make  it  so,  as  well  as  the  character! 
of  the  man  who  wrote  it  and  the  character  of  the  man 
to  whom  it  was  written.  It  is  Paul's  final  word  in  the 
form  of  a  charge. 

Nearly  everybody  who  delivers  the  charge  when  a 
preacher  is  ordained  uses  some  of  this  fourth  chapter, 
and  very  appropriately.  I  call  attention  to  the  signifi- 
cation of  the  word,  "charge."  Sometimes  it  is  used  in 
the  sense  of  "adjure."  The  high  priest  said  to  Jesus, 
"I  adjure  thee  before  God."  To  adjure  means  to  put 
on  oath.  "I  put  thee  on  oath  before  God,  are  you  the 
Messiah?"  "I  am."  That  is  the  same  as  if  he  had 
sworn  it  with  uplifted  hand.  A  charge  has  that  signifi- 
cation. "Oh,  Timothy,  I  put  thee  on  thine  oath  before 
God."  It  also  has  the  meaning  of  enjoining  very  sol- 
emnly. 

Now  we  will  see  how  he  charges:  "I  charge  thee  in 
the  sight  of  God  and  of  Jesus  Christ,  Who  shall  judge 
the  living  and  the  dead  and  by  His  appearing  and  His 
kingdom."  God,  Christ,  Christ's  appearing,  Christ's 
judgment  of  the  living  and  the  dead,  Christ's  Kingdom! 
What  an  assemblage  of  solemnities! 

Now  do  what  ?    Preach  the  word.    The  emphasis  there 

179 


180  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

is  on  "the  word."  Preach  the  word.  Over  and  over 
again  we  have  noticed  that  Paul  had  a  system  of  truth 
which  he  received  from  Christ  and  which  he  dehvered 
to  Timothy,  and  that  this  system  of  truth  is  the  most 
precious  deposit  in  the  world.  That  is  what  he  must 
preach.  That  is  the  supreme  limitation  of  the  theme  of 
the  preacher.  I  have  felt  shame,  sorrow,  and  contempt, 
all  blended,  at  some  things  I  have  heard  from  the  pulpit. 
They  were  nice  enough  little  things,  but  nothing  from 
the  word  of  God,  nothing  to  convict  a  sinner,  nothing  to 
lead  a  sinner  to  Christ,  nothing  to  lead  a  babe  in  Christ 
to  maturity  in  Christian  knowledge,  nothing  to  develop 
high,  holy,  and  enduring  Christian  character.  Preaching 
is  a  solemn  work. 

Just  here  I  commend  to  the  reader  what  Cowper  says 
about  the  preacher  who  gets  up  in  the  pulpit  to  be  a 
mountebank  instead  of  a  herald  of  the  Cross,  "Imagine 
Spurgeon  before  a  mirror  practicing  the  attitudes  and 
postures  he  will  assume  when  he  goes  to  preach!" 

"I  charge  thee  in  the  sight  of  God,  and  of  Jesus  Christ, 
Who  shall  judge  the  living  and  the  dead,  by  His  appear- 
ing and  His  kingdom,  preach  the  word."  Some  call 
me  cranky  on  the  subject  of  what  I  preach.  One  man, 
in  criticising  my  first  book  of  sermons,  said,  "There  is 
too  much  scripture  in  it."  I  thanked  him  for  his  criti- 
cism. I  try  to  preach  sermons  that  are  literally  saturated 
with  scripture. 

"Be  urgent  in  season  and  out  of  season."  Perhaps  a 
little  better  rendering  would  be:  "Be  alert,"  that  is, 
"keep  your  eyes  open,  do  not  go  through  the  world  sleep- 
ing." To  be  alert  is  to  be  ready.  I  traveled  once  with 
an  old  Indian  scout,  and  the  most  notable  feature  about 
him  was  his  alertness.  I  could  see  his  eye  play  over 
every  bush  or  tree,  over  the  mountains  or  plains.     Not 


PAUL'S  FINAL  WORD  181 

a  thing  in  the  range  of  his  vision  escaped  his  notice. 
He  was  alert.  Everything  around  him  was  searched  for 
a  token  of  the  presence  of  an  enemy.  He  slept  that 
way.  I  noticed  that  when  he  went  to  bed  everything  was 
put  right  where  he  could  get  it.  He  could  in  one  minute 
after  sudden  waking,  he  ready  for  a  fight.  That  is 
alertness,  and  that  is  the  thought  here  rather  than 
urgency.  The  thought  is:  "Be  alert  in  season  and  out 
of  season,"  Any  man  can  be  alert  under  some  circum- 
stances. They  are  pregnant  with  warnings.  But  other 
circumstances  lull  into  a  sense  of  security.  Paul  urges 
alertness  at  all  times,  so  as  not  to  be  taken  by  surprise. 

Now  come  a  number  of  words  which  have  a  special 
signification:  "Reprove  [or  rather,  convict],  rebuke,  ex- 
hort." "If  your  brother  sin,  convict  him,"  that  is,  first 
make  him  see  his  sin.  Then,  having  shown  him  his  sin, 
rebuke,  or  admonish  him ;  then  having  admonished  him, 
exhort  him,  and  let  all  of  it  be  done  with  all  possible 
forbearance  and  long-sufifering,  line  upon  line.  A  pastor 
should  keep  in  mind  John's  vision  of  the  alert  Son  of 
God,  moving  among  the  churches,  noticing  everything, 
taking  cognizance  of  all  conditions. 

He  assigned  the  reason  for  this  solemn  charge:  "For 
the  time  will  come  when  they  will  not  endure  the  sound 
doctrine."  We  are  to  preach  the  sound  doctrine — the 
word — for  a  time  will  come  when  our  congregations  will 
not  endure  the  sound  teaching;  when  they  will  not  want 
it.  They  will  want  something  else.  What  will  they  do? 
"Having  itching  ears,"  that  is,  ears  eager  to  hear  pleasant 
things,  "they  will  heap  to  themselves  teachers  after  their 
own  desire."  The  times  do  come  when  people  won't 
hear  sound  doctrines.  One  of  the  saddest  instances  I 
know  was  the  case  of  Jonathan  Edwards,  who  is  re- 
garded, and  particularly  after  his  great  revival,  as  one 


182  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

of  the  theologians  since  Paul.  He  insisted  that  in  order 
to  save  that  place  the  old-time  word  of  God  must  be 
preached ;  that  there  is  a  devil  and  he  must  say  so ;  that 
there  is  a  hell  and  he  must  say  so;  there  is  imminent 
danger  of  falling  under  the  wrath  of  God,  into  the  hands 
of  Satan,  into  the  depths  of  hell.  He  preached  that, 
and  a  most  marvelous  revival  followed.  Before  the 
close  of  the  series  of  meetings,  which  this  sermon  origi- 
nated, 250,000  people  were  converted.  Jonathan  Ed- 
wards was  the  oracle  of  God.  But  there  came  a  time  in 
that  very  community  when  they  would  not  hear  Jonathan 
Edwards.  They  wanted  a  different  sort  of  teaching, 
and  just  about  the  unsoundest  piece  of  Christendom 
today  is  the  section  where  Jonathan  Edwards  was  re- 
pudiated. If  one  wants  to  get  a  set  of  preachers  that 
know  just  the  least  part  of  the  gospel,  that  is  the  place 
to  find  them.  They  have  heaped  up  to  themselves 
teachers  that  are  according  to  their  own  desires.  I  have 
been  in  places,  strategical  places,  mighty  places,  and 
have  groaned  in  my  soul  because  some  mighty  man  of 
God  was  not  in  charge  of  that  place.  Maybe  some 
preacher  is  in  charge,  and  the  people  want  him  in  charge, 
who  does  not  care  a  snap  of  his  finger  for  the  mission 
work,  for  the  cause  of  Christ,  for  anything  except  a 
good,  comfortable,  easy  pastorate.  I  never  wanted  to 
be  a  bishop  in  the  Methodist  sense,  but  if  I  were  a 
bishop  I  would  make  some  quick  removals. 

I  have  seen  churches  turn  away  from  preachers  of 
real  ability  and  unquestionable  piety,  preachers  whose 
history  demonstrated  that  they  were  alive  with  life,  glory, 
and  power.  They  were  shelved,  or  turned  out  to  make 
way  for  some  popinjay,  whose  ministrations  never  in- 
struct, never  develop,  but  who  holds  the  young  people 
together.     The  trouble  about  ministrations  of  that  kind 


PAUL'S  FINAL  WORD  183 

is  that  when  the  older  people  of  the  congregation  die  off, 
the  younger  people  do  not  know  anything  at  all  about 
doctrine  and  would  just  as  soon  drift  into  one  denomi- 
nation as  another,  or  away  from  them  all. 

Old  Dr.  Lyman  Beecher,  the  greatest  of  all  the 
Beechers,  saw  that  illustrated  in  his  own  children,  and 
yet  he  is  the  man  who  stood  up  and  said,  "The  time  will 
come  when  the  imposture  of  Mohamet  will  be  exposed, 
when  the  principles  of  Mormonism  will  receive  no  favor 
in  an  intelligent  community.  But  I  fear  the  time  is  also 
coming  when  the  preachers  will  preach  a  gospel  that 
has  no  power  to  awaken  a  sinner,  nor  to  save  him  after 
awakened,  nor  to  console  a  broken  heart,  but  of  simply 
enough  power  to  lull  him  to  sleep  until  the  day  passes 
and  the  night  of  eternal  death  has  come." 

"They  will  turn  away  their  ears  from  the  truth,  and 
turn  aside  unto  fables."  What  did  the  apostasy  which 
he  predicted  do  when  it  came?  It  turned  aside  from 
the  truth  to  accept  the  infallible  declaration  of  the  Pope. 
It  condemned  the  giving  of  the  word  of  God  to  the 
people.  It  reared  up  monasteries  and  nunneries  where 
marriage  was  adjured  and  where  a  string  of  fables  con- 
cerning the  saints  was  doled  out  instead  of  the  word  of 
God.  That  time  did  come  when  people  left  the  Bible, 
the  impregnable  rock  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  to  take  up 
something  else. 

He  exhorts  Timothy  as  to  his  own  conduct.  "Be  sober 
in  all  things.  Suffer  hardship,  do  the  work  of  an  evan- 
gelist, fulfill  thy  ministry."  Can  we  ever  get  that  thought 
sufificiently  in  the  minds  of  our  preachers — that  the  min- 
isterial service  is  a  hard  service  and  that  the  preacher 
has  a  course  to  fulfill,  so  that  whether  he  lives  long  or 
dies  soon  he  ought  to  be  able  to  say:  "I  have  finished 
my  course,  I  have  fulfilled  what  I  had  to  do"? 


184  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

This  deep  concern  of  Paul  arose  from  his  knowledge 
that  his  own  day  of  departure  was  at  hand.  The  gospel 
must  be  transmitted.  It  must  not  die  with  him.  He 
had  fought  his  fight  and  finished  his  course,  but  who 
would  be  the  standard-bearer  when  the  flag  fell  from 
his  nerveless  hand?  "The  time  of  my  exodus  has  come." 
This  is  the  same  word  in  the  Greek  that  we  have  in 
Moses'  time.  It  means  the  unmooring  of  a  ship.  The 
time  had  come  for  that  ship  to  go  out  on  an  unknown 
sea.  In  view  of  that  fact  he  takes  a  backward  look  at 
his  life,  and  this  is  what  he  says:  "I  have  fought  a  good 
fight ;  I  have  finished  the  course.  I  have  kept  the  faith." 
There  is  not  one  iota  of  the  revelation  made  to  me  that 
I  have  swerved  from.  I  have  preserved  it  inviolate,  and 
I  desire  to  transmit  it  intact. 

Now  we  come  to  a  new  thought:  "Henceforth  there 
is  laid  up  for  me  the  crown  of  righteousness  which  the 
Lord,  the  righteous  judge,  shall  give  to  me  at  that  day." 
This  is  a  reward.  There  are  several  kinds  of  crowns 
mentioned  in  the  Bible — a  crown  of  victory,  a  crown  of 
rejoicing,  and  there  is  a  crown  which  Jesus  will  bestow 
upon  faithful  laborers.  The  question  is.  When  will  He 
do  it?  In  other  words,  as  soon  as  Paul  died  did  he  get 
his  reward  ?  He  did  not ;  that  is  not  the  doctrine  at  all. 
He  got  his  salvation,  which  was  not  a  reward,  but  grace. 
He  went  straight  to  God,  for  to  be  absent  from  the  body 
is  to  be  present  with  God.  His  reward  is  laid  up  and 
will  be  bestowed  when  Jesus  comes  again.  At  the  second 
advent  of  our  Lord  is  the  time  for  the  bestowing  of 
rewards.  Then,  according  to  our  fidelity  as  Christians, 
will  we  be  rewarded.  As  it  is  said  by  Paul  in  I  Cor.  3, 
where  he  compares  a  preacher  to  a  builder  whose  foun- 
dation is  Christ,  and  if  any  man  build  on  this  foundation 
of  bad  material  like  wood,  hay,  and  stubble,  he  shall 


PAUL'S  FINAL  WORD  185 

suffer  loss  that  day — the  day  that  tries  by  fire.  But  if 
he  has  built  with  enduring  material,  gold,  silver,  precious 
stones  (not  jewels,  but  good  building  rock),  he  will  get 
his  reward. 

Now  I  will  tell  a  dream  which  I  had.  I  am  sure  that 
my  study  of  the  subject  had  something  to  do  with  my 
dreaming  it.  It  seemed  that  I  was  just  gliding  around. 
I  could  lift  myself  up  without  making  a  step,  without 
wings,  and  move  with  great  rapidity  by  volition.  Moving 
that  way  I  came  to  a  glorious  habitation.  I  don't  know 
how  I  got  in,  but  when  I  got  inside  I  saw  a  vast  hall 
with  the  most  glorious  objects  that  my  eyes  had  ever 
beheld  or  my  heart  had  conceived  of,  hanging  on  the 
walls:  Jewels,  medals,  badges  of  honor,  and  everything 
on  earth  I  could  conceive  of.  Finally,  I  came  and  stood 
right  under  one,  by  far  the  most  glorious  of  all,  and 
read  this  inscription :  "This  crown  is  reserved  for  Paul." 

When  that  day  comes  and  every  Christian  stands  be- 
fore God,  according  to  his  fidelity  as  a  Christian,  he  will 
be  rewarded  or  suffer  loss.  That  does  not  touch  the 
question  of  salvation.  He  says  here  that  Christ  will  not 
only  reward  hint,  but  all  that  have  loved  His  appearing, 
all  who  have  believed  in  His  advent.  I  am  sure  that 
when  the  time  for  this  distribution  comes,  it  will  be  an 
eye-opening  time.  Many  people  will  be  startled.  People 
who  expect  their  crown  to  be  a  brilliant  diadem  will  get 
but  small  reward.  Instead  of  their  ship  coming  in  with 
every  flag  flying  and  mast  standing,  it  will  have  to  be 
towed  in  by  the  tug,  "Grace."  It  barely  gets  in,  and  is 
"saved  as  by  fire." 

I  give  one  more  scripture  before  closing  this  chapter. 
The  last  book  of  the  Old  Testament  states  that  one  can- 
not right  now  altogether  discern  between  righteousness 
and  wickedness.     Some  sins  go  before  man  and  some 


186  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

follow  after.  There  are  a  great  many  things  that  keep 
us  from  discerning  between  the  righteous  and  the  wicked 
now,  but  when  we  appear  before  God  on  that  day,  we 
shall  discern  between  the  righteous  and  the  wicked. 

In  Mai.  3  he  says  that  in  a  time  of  great  spiritual 
dearth,  when  it  looked  like  everybody  was  going  astray, 
there  were  some  who  feared  God,  and  who  spake  often 
one  with  another.  God-fearing  men  who  thought  much 
about  heaven,  and  about  prayer,  held  their  communions 
with  each  other.  The  record  says  that  God  listened,  that 
He  heard  what  was  said,  and  commanded  the  angel  to 
write  it  down.  "That  is  worth  keeping.  Put  that  in  a 
book.  That  which  men  count  great  you  may  pass  over; 
it  does  not  amount  to  anything,  but  here  is  something 
worthy  of  record,  these  God-fearing  men  and  women, 
in  this  awful  spiritual  dearth,  speaking  of  heaven  one  to 
another,  put  down  what  they  say." 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Of  what  does  this  last  chapter  of  II  Timothy  consist,  and 
what  use  has   been   made   of   it? 

2.  What  is  the  meaning  of  the  word,  "charge?"  Give 
example. 

3.  Name  the  five  Solemnities  with  which  he  gives  this  charge. 

4.  What  the   charge? 

5.  What  the  meaning  of  "be  urgent  in  season  and  out  of 
season?"     Illustrate. 

6.  What  the  reason  he  assigns  for  this  charge?  Give  an 
instance. 

7.  What  danger  to  the  rising  generation  here  pointed  out? 
Give  an  instance. 

8.  What  did  the  apostasy  which  he  predicted  do  when  it 
came? 

9.  How  does  Paul  exhort  Timothy  as  to   his  own  conduct? 
ID.    Why  this   deep   concern  of    Paul? 

11.  What   his    famous    parting    words? 

12.  What  Paul's  reward,  and  when  bestowed? 

13.  What    the   basis   of  our   rewards?     Cite   other   scripture. 

14.  Give   the   author's    dream    relative    to   this    point. 

15.  What  startling  facts  mentioned  here  will  be  brought  out 
at  the  Judgment? 


XVI 

THE  LIFE  OF  PETER 

Scriptures:  All  References 

THIS  chapter,  and  the  next,  will  be  confined  to  a 
glance  at  the  life  of  Peter,  as  set  forth  in  the 
New  Testament.  The  material  is  as  follows: 
The  Four  Gospels,  as  arranged  in  the  Broadus  Har- 
mony, the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  several  chapters  of 
Paul's  letter  to  the  Galatians,  and  the  letters  of  Peter 
himself. 

We  have  in  this  account  the  history  of  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  men  that  ever  lived.  He  was  a  poor  man, 
though  his  partners,  James  and  John,  were  well  to  do. 
He  was  an  uneducated  man,  and  later  was  reproached 
with  the  fact  that  he  had  never  had  any  learning.  He 
was  a  married  man  and  had  a  family  to  take  care  of 
when  he  was  converted,  and  his  only  educational  train- 
ing was  under  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  for  three  years, 
and  under  the  Holy  Spirit  later.  This  case  of  Peter 
illustrates  what  I  have  often  said :  that  it  is  not  essential 
to  the  ministerial  office,  or  to  ministerial  success,  that  a 
man  should  be  a  graduate  of  a  college.  I  must  not,  how- 
ever, be  misunderstood.  Far  be  it  from  me  to  speak 
against  a  college  education  on  the  part  of  those  whose 
circumstances,  age,  environment,  and  means  enable  them 
to  get  a  college  education,  and  who  have  the  capacity  to 
take  it.     But  I  do  mean  to  affirm  that  Christ  and  the 

187 


188  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

original  twelve  apostles  were  not  school  men,  and  yet 
they  have  impressed  the  world. 

It  oftentimes  happens  that  God  calls  a  man  to  preach 
in  middle  life,  after  he  has  a  wife  and  children.  It  is 
the  folly  of  some  good  people  that  the  ministry  should 
be  cut  down  to  men  who  have  first  obtained  a  college 
degree  and  then  a  seminary  degree.  The  thought  is  un- 
scriptural,  unbaptistic,  unhistorical,  and  it  is  incalculably 
mischievous. 

Now  we  take  up  Peter's  name.  His  given  name  was 
Symeon  in  Aramaic  (see  Acts  15:  14;  II  Peter  1:1)  or 
Simon  in  Greek.  We  get  his  surname  from  Math.  16: 17, 
i.  e.,  "Bar- Jonah."  "Bar"  means  son ;  "Simon,  son  of 
Jonah" — or  the  son  of  John,  as  some  represent  it.  His 
cognomen  given  by  Christ  was  Cephas  in  Aramaic ;  or 
in  Greek,  Petros;  in  English,  Peter,  meaning  a  stone 
(John  1:42;  Math.  16:18). 

His  home  was  on  the  border  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee, 
Bethsaida  first,  then  Capernaum.  He  was  living  at 
Capernaum  in  his  own  house  when  Christ  went  there. 
He  not  only  had  a  wife,  but  later  on  in  life  when  he 
went  out  on  his  apostolic  tours,  he  took  his  wife  along. 
There  are  some  preachers  who,  apart  from  the  question 
of  cost,  don't  particularly  care  to  have  their  wives  go 
with  them.  Sometimes  it  is  much  better  that  the  wife 
be  along.  She  will  at  least  see  that  his  clothes  are 
properly  brushed,  and  his  neck-cloth  tied,  and  she  will 
be  sure  to  point  out  any  wrong  mannerism  in  the  pulpit 
or  in  mixing  with  the  people.  He  is  apt  to  fret  a  little 
at  that.  Many  preachers  are  thin-skinned  when  it  comes 
to  criticism,  but  it  is  much  better  for  the  preacher  to  re- 
member that  his  wife  does  not  do  that  for  the  pleasure 
of  nagging,  but  it  is  because  she  loves  him,  and  does  not 
like  to  see  him  make  wrong  impressions.     Now  all  of 


THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  189 

this  grows  out  of  the  starting  point,  that  Peter  took  his 
wife  along  with  him. 

In  the  next  place,  Peter  took  care  of  his  mother-in- 
law,  however  strange  that  may  seem.  Notwithstanding 
all  of  the  jokes  on  the  subject  of  mother-in-law,  some 
people  have  dearly  loved  their  wife's  mother,  the  author 
for  one. 

We  notice  his  business.  He  was  a  fisherman.  The 
Sea  of  Galilee  has  always  been  famous  for  its  multitude 
of  fishes. 

In  getting  at  the  character  of  Peter  from  his  own 
view-point,  we  must  study  Mark's  gospel,  commonly  and 
rightly  called  Peter's  gospel,  and  Peter's  letters.  We 
should  read  Mark  through  at  one  sitting,  keeping  in  our 
mind  that  this  is  virtually  Peter  speaking,  and  watch  for 
the  outcropping  of  the  author's  view  of  himself.  In 
the  same  way  read  his  letters.  In  such  light  Peter  shows 
to  much  advantage.  Then  study  the  other  authorities 
for  the  view  of  him  from  their  standpoint.  Here  again, 
on  the  whole,  Peter  shows  to  advantage,  particularly 
when  we  consider  our  Lord's  estimate  of  him.  Jesus 
knew  what  was  in  the  man.  While  rebuking  Peter  often, 
he  ranked  him  very  high. 

It  is  evident  from  all  these  sources  of  information  that 
he  was  a  plain,  straightforward,  sincere,  impulsive,  and 
withal  a  very  curious  man.  He  was  a  regular  interro- 
gation point.  In  going  over  the  places  in  chronological 
order  where  Peter's  name  comes  into  history,  we  cannot 
help  noticing  that  Peter  asks  more  questions  than  all 
the  rest  of  the  apostles  put  together.  Generally,  he  asks 
his  question  straight  out :  "Lord,  what  do  you  mean  by 
that  parable  of  the  blind  guides?"  "Lord,  where  are 
you  going?"  "Lord,  why  can't  I  follow  you  now?" 
"Lord,  look  at  the  temple  and  these  stones" — and  where 


190  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

he  cannot  ask  a  question  himself,  he  nudges  John  to  ask 
it,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Lord's  Supper  when  he  prompted 
John  to  ask  Jesus  who  it  was  that  was  going  to  betray 
Him.  David  Crocket  once  said  that  he  had  a  hound- 
puppy  that  he  set  great  store  by  on  account  of  his  in- 
quisitive disposition ;  that  he  could  nose  around  into  more 
things  than  any  other  dog  he  ever  saw;  sometimes  he 
got  himself  into  trouble,  but  if  a  dog  did  not  have  an 
inquisitive  disposition  he  would  never  jump  a  rabbit. 
A  great  many  people  lack  knowledge  for  not  asking 
questions.  A  wise  man  never  needs  to  ask  the  same 
question  twice. 

Peter  had  a  streak  of  weakness  in  him  arising  largely 
from  his  impulsiveness  and  over-confidence  in  himself. 
We  might  call  it  a  presumptuous  streak ;  a  conceited 
streak.  He  had  no  idea  that  anybody  in  the  world  could 
hold  on  to  Christ  like  himself.  Everybody  else  might 
turn  loose,  but  he  would  not.  He  frequently  over-esti- 
mated himself,  and  under-estimated  the  power  of  the 
devil.  The  element  of  presumption  in  him  is  intimated 
by  his  rebukes  of  the  Savior.  Jesus,  in  a  great  press  of 
people,  says,  "Who  touched  me?"  and  Peter  spoke  up  at 
once — ^he  always  says  something — "Lord,  you  see  this 
crowd  all  around  here  pressing  us,  and  say  'Who  touched 
me'?  Who  could  tell?  Why  should  you  say  that?" 
Jesus  replied  to  him:  "I  know  some  particular  person 
touched  me  for  a  particular  object,  for  virtue  went  out 
from  me."  Now,  Peter  had  not  thought  of  the  power 
of  Christ's  consciousness  to  determine  out-going  virtue 
in  response  to  silent  appeals.  We  see  that  presumption 
manifested  again  when  he  said,  "Far  be  it  from  thee. 
Lord,  to  suffer  and  die."  And  again  when  he  said, 
"Lord,  do  you  wash  my  feet?"  "Lord,  you  shall  never 
wash  my  feet."    And  again,  "Wash  me  all  over,  head, 


THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  191 

and  hands,  and  feet."  We  see  him  again  in  the  great 
vision  he  had  at  Joppa  correcting  the  Almighty  himself : 
"Not  so,  Lord." 

An  element  of  weakness  shows  itself  at  Antioch.  He 
is  influenced  by  certain  men  who  come  up  from  James. 
Peter  had  been  eating  and  drinking  with  the  Gentiles, 
until  through  fear  of  their  censure  he  is  involved  in 
dissimulation,  but  like  all  other  impulsive  men  he  is 
quick  to  get  right  and  frank  to  make  full  confession  of 
his  wrong.  His  weakness  appears  particularly  in  his 
denial  of  the  Lord,  and  that  too  after  being  warned  be- 
forehand and  cautioned  the  second  time,  and  yet  it  came 
on  him  so  suddenly  that  he  turned  loose  all  hold  of 
Christ  and  denied  that  he  ever  knew  Him,  and  swore  like 
a  trooper.  Notwithstanding  all  this,  Peter  is  one  of  the 
most  lovable  characters  in  history. 

A  distinguished  lady  once  said  to  me,  "I  cannot  stand 
Paul;  he  never  makes  any  mistakes.  But  Peter  is  a 
great  comfort  to  me ;  he  is  so  human  in  his  errors."  He 
had  faults  with  his  greatness,  and  it  rather  comforted 
her  to  think  that  a  great  man  like  Peter  would  shoot  off 
his  mouth  so  fast  sometimes.  That  is  why  she  said 
Peter  was  a  comfort  to  her. 

Now,  there  is  a  distinct  development  in  Peter.  We 
can  trace  the  training;  as  he  gets  older  he  becomes 
stronger  in  character  and  more  mellow  in  spirit.  In  all 
literature  we  do  not  find  a  document  more  humble  in 
spirit,  more  loyal,  and  more  royal  than  Peter's  first  letter. 
It  is  a  great  document — the  letter  we  are  now  going  to 
study. 

Now,  while  I  have  before  me  every  New  Testament 
passage  which  names  Peter,  and  arranged  in  chronolog- 
ical order,  giving  the  page  in  the  harmony,  and  the  cita- 
tion from  the  New  Testament  books,  I  will  cite  only  a 


192  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

few  incidents  which  made  the  greatest  impressions  on 
his  life.  From  them  we  find  what  things  done  and  said 
by  our  Lord,  or  what  impressions  from  the  Holy  Spirit, 
most  touched  Peter's  heart.  Just  as  in  the  case  of  David, 
we  might  ask,  "What  things  in  David's  life  most  im- 
pressed him,  allowing  the  Psalms  to  interpret  the  impres- 
sion?" and  taking  the  book  of  Psalms  find  out  from 
them  what  great  impressions  had  been  made  upon  the 
mind  of  David  by  the  incidents  of  his  life.  Now,  by 
taking  Peter's  two  letters,  and  adding  to  them  Peter's 
speeches  as  reported  in  Acts,  it  is  an  easy  thing  to  de- 
termine what  experiences  impressed  Peter  more  than 
the  others,  and  in  the  same  way  we  find  from  John's 
gospel  what  things  particularly  fastened  themselves  upon 
his  mind.  But  we  are  dealing  with  Peter  now,  and  the 
first  instance  is  his  conversion,  when  he  was  brought  to 
Christ  by  his  brother  Andrew,  an  account  of  which  is 
found  on  the  19th  page  of  the  Harmony,  and  recorded 
in  John  1:40-42.  Our  Lord  recognized  the  power  of 
the  man  as  soon  as  he  saw  him,  and  before  Peter  could 
say  a  word  He  uses  the  language  that  I  make  a  text  of 
in  my  sermon,  found  in  my  first  volume  of  sermons: 
"Thou  art  Simon ;  thou  shalt  be  called  Cephas,  or  Peter." 
That  sermon  is  called  "From  Simon  to  Cephas,"  and  its 
object  was  to  trace  the  development  in  the  character  of 
Peter.  Simon  means  a  hearer  or  learner,  and  Peter 
means  a  rock — stability. 

It  is  probable  that  Peter  went  with  Jesus  to  the  mar- 
riage of  Cana  in  Galilee,  and  went  with  Him  to  Caper- 
naum, and  was  also  with  Him  on  His  preaching  tour  in 
Northern  Judea  near  where  John  was  baptizing  in  Enon, 
and  was  also  with  Him  in  passing  through  Samaria  to 
go  to  Galilee,  but  not  with  Him  when  Jesus  went  to  Cana 
a  second  time  and  to  Nazareth  the  first  time. 


THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  193 

The  next  great  impression  on  his  mind  comes  from 
his  call  to  the  ministry.  That  is  on  the  27th  and  28th 
pages  of  the  Harmony,  Mark  i :  16-17.  Jesus  called  to 
the  ministry  two  pairs  of  brothers:  James  and  John,  and 
Peter  and  Andrew,  at  the  Sea  of  Galilee.  In  close  con- 
nection with  this  call  comes  an  incident  profoundly  im- 
pressing Peter's  mind,  found  on  the  same  page  of  the 
Harmony,  but  told  in  Luke  5.  It  was  the  miraculous 
draught  of  fishes  resulting  from  casting  the  net  accord- 
ing to  Christ's  direction.  When  they  went  to  draw  up 
the  net  it  was  filled  with  such  a  multitude  of  fishes  that 
the  net  broke,  and  the  boat  was  filled,  ready  to  sink, 
with  the  fishes  put  in  it.  The  miracle  profoundly  im- 
pressed Peter.  Here  was  a  power  that  could  either  bring 
the  fish  to  a  certain  point,  or  the  omniscience  that  could 
know  where  they  were  in  a  school  and  could  so  give  the 
direction  that  just  letting  down  the  net  would  take  a 
great  multitude,  and  as  the  miracle  worked  in  on  his 
mind  he  became  conscious  that  he  was  in  the  presence 
of  one  holier  than  himself.  Sin  rose  up  in  him,  the  con- 
viction of  sin,  and  he  knelt  down  before  Jesus  and  said, 
"Depart  from  me.  Lord,  for  I  am  a  sinful  man."  I  often 
use  that  to  illustrate  the  strangeness  of  conviction  of 
sin. 

Most  people  whose  words  and  actions  convict  other 
people  of  sin  are  not  conscious  at  the  time  that  they  are 
convicting  of  sin,  and  many  a  preacher  studies  a  sermon 
and  preaches  it  with  a  view  of  conviction  of  sin,  and 
never  convicts  a  man  in  the  congregation.  But  there 
was  that  conviction  of  sin  forced  upon  Peter's  heart  by 
the  consciousness  that  he  was  in  touch  with  divinity. 
In  any  kind  of  meeting  as  soon  as  God's  presence  is  felt 
people  will  be  convicted  right  and  left ;  convicted  quickly 
in  the  strangest  kind  of  ways. 


194  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

The  next  thing  that  impressed  Peter  was  to  have  the 
Lord  in  his  own  house.  Now,  hospitable  people  might 
rejoice  in  having  pleasant  company  or  great  company, 
but  here  was  one  of  the  few  humble  houses  of  Galilee 
that  sheltered  the  Lord,  and  as  the  Lord  came  in  the 
fever  left  the  mother-in-law.  His  power  came  with 
Him,  and  Peter's  house  became  a  focus  of  power,  and 
his  front  yard  full  of  supplicants  crying  for  mercy  and 
healing,  and  salvation  blazed  all  around  Peter's  house 
because  the  Lord  was  there. 

The  next  look  we  have  at  Peter  is  the  impression  made 
upon  his  mind  by  these  tremendous  miracles  of  our  Lord. 
His  presumption  is  excited,  and  so  we  find  on  the  30th 
page  of  the  Harmony,  as  recorded  in  Mark  1 135  and 
Luke  4  '.42,  that  Peter  tries  to  work  a  corner  on  salvation. 
Christ  had  gone  ofif  to  spend  the  night  in  prayer.  Peter 
obtruded  upon  Him  in  His  private  devotion,  with  a  view 
to  keeping  Him  there  at  Capernaum,  as  if  he  could  dam 
up  salvation  in  a  little  town  and  not  let  it  outflow  to 
other  places.  Our  Lord  rebuked  him  and  said,  "I  must 
go  to  other  towns  also ;  you  cannot  hold  me  here ;  you 
cannot  dam  up  this  stream  of  life  and  limit  it  to  one 
locality." 

Without  comment  I  note  the  fact  that  he  was  one  of 
the  three  at  the  raising  of  the  daughter  of  Jairus,  and 
that  he  was  one  of  the  disciples  that  plucked  grain  on  the 
Sabbath  day  and  caused  a  controversy.  He  was  also 
one  of  the  disciples  in  the  little  boat  which  Jesus  had 
pushed  out  into  the  sea  away  from  the  multitude  in  order 
to  teach  the  people. 

On  the  49th  page  of  the  Harmony,  Mark  3: 14-17,  is 
the  ordination  of  Peter  and  the  other  eleven  disciples. 
The  call  had  preceded  and  they  had  learned  a  good 
many   things   in   being   with  Jesus.     But   Jesus,    after 


THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  195 

spending  the  night  in  prayer,  ordained  these  men  and 
set  them  apart  to  the  full  work  of  the  ministry,  and 
designated  them  as  apostles  to  be  witnesses  for  him. 
That  ordination  was  followed  by  the  great  Sermon  on 
the  Mount,  expanding  and  expounding  the  law. 

The  next  impressive  thing  in  his  history  is  on  the  71st 
to  76th  page  of  the  Harmony,  as  set  forth  in  Matthew  10. 
The  twelve  have  been  ordained  and  have  heard  His 
preaching,  and  now  He  is  going  to  send  them  out,  and 
Mark  says,  "two  by  two."  Peter  knows  that  he  went 
with  one  of  them  wherever  he  went.  I  suppose  John 
was  with  him ;  more  than  apt  to  be  with  John  than  with 
his  own  brother  Andrew.  Now,  in  this  loth  chapter  of 
Matthew  we  have  the  elaborate  instructions  given  to 
these  men  before  they  were  sent  out.  This  was  the 
first  time  Peter  ever  went  oflf  from  his  Lord  to  do  any 
work,  and  they  went  in  every  direction,  two  together, 
with  instructions  as  to  what  to  do  and  how  to  do  it,  and 
they  came  back  and  made  a  report.  There  Mark  brings 
in  a  new  fact  again,  which  he  gets  from  Peter,  and 
it  was  just  like  Peter  to  make  that  kind  of  a  report. 
When  he  came  back  he  reported  not  only  what  he  had 
done,  but  what  he  had  taught.  There  is  the  defect  in 
our  missionary  reports  today ;  we  report  the  miles  trav- 
eled, sermons  preached,  houses  visited,  the  Sunday- 
schools,  prayer  meetings,  and  churches  organized,  but 
we  do  not  say  what  we  have  taught.  Now  Peter  came 
back  and  reported  what  he  had  taught. 

We  now  come  to  the  next  important  incident  in  his 
life,  the  appearance  of  Christ  walking  on  the  water,  which 
shocked  all  of  them.  They  thought  it  was  a  ghost — an 
apparition.  When  they  learned  that  it  was  the  Lord, 
that  impulsive  Peter  said,  "Lord,  tell  me  to  come  to 
you;  I  will  come  if  you  say,  'come.'     I  don't  mind  the 


196  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

water.  If  you  tell  me  to  walk  on  the  water,  I  will  do  it." 
The  Lord  says,  "Come,"  and  Peter  steps  out  and  walks 
on  the  water,  and  if  he  had  kept  his  eye  on  Christ  he 
would  have  walked  all  the  way,  but  he  got  to  looking 
at  the  waves  tumbling  around  him,  and  at  the  wind, 
and  began  to  sink.  But  whenever  Peter  got  into  trouble 
he  cried  out  for  help,  so  now  he  prays :  "Lord  help  me, 
or  I  perish."  Now,  that  incident  illustrates  Peter  and 
his  character.  The  original  character  of  the  man,  the 
impulsiveness  of  the  man,  the  audacity  of  the  man,  and 
then  the  shrinking  of  the  man  from  the  responsibility 
which  he  had  brought  upon  himself. 

We  next  come  to  a  more  important  event.  We  find  it 
on  the  83rd  page  of  the  Harmony.  It  is  his  first  confes- 
sion. Jesus  had  preached  a  sermon  on  hard  doctrine, 
"the  Bread  of  Life,"  and  his  main  object  was  to  slough 
ofif  transitory  people.  He  wanted  the  right  kind  to  stick 
to  Him,  but  He  did  not  want  His  body  of  disciples  to 
be  filled  up  with  unprepared  material,  and  He  preached 
that  sermon  with  a  view  to  sloughing  off  and  the  crowd 
sloughed  off,  and  it  looked  like  everybody  was  going  to 
leave  Him.  Upon  this  many  of  His  disciples  went  back 
and  walked  no  more  with  Him.  Jesus  said  therefore 
unto  the  twelve,  "Will  you  also  go  away?"  Simon  Peter 
answered :  "Lord,  to  whom  shall  we  go  ?  Thou  hast  the 
words  of  eternal  life,  and  we  have  believed  and  know 
that  thou  art  the  Holy  One  of  God."  Peter  is  great  there. 
Nobody  else  spoke,  and  as  usual  Peter  was  all-inclusive, 
he  was  ready  to  speak  for  others  as  well  as  for  himself, 
and  he  included  too  many  when  he  spoke  for  the  whole 
twelve.  Jesus  corrected  it  and  said,  "One  of  you  is  a 
devil.  You  can  speak  for  yourself,  but  not  for  all." 
That  is  the  first  confession  of  Peter.  "Thou  hast  the 
words  of  eternal  life.    There  is  no  one  else  to  go  to.    We 


THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  197 

have  believed  and  know  that  thou  art  the  Holy  One  of 
God." 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Where  do  we  find  scripture  material  for  the  life  of 
Peter? 

2.  Give  an  account  of  Peter:  (i)  His  circumstances.  (2) 
His  education  and  the  bearing  on  an  educated  ministry.  (3)  His 
family  relations. 

3.  What  his  Aramaic  name,  his  Greek  name,  his  surname,  his 
cognomen  in  Aramaic,  Greek,  and  English? 

4.  Where  was  his  home,  and  what  lesson  from  his  taking 
his  wife  along  with  him? 

5.  What  his  business? 

6.  What  books  may  one  study  in  order  to  get  at  Peter  from 
his  own  view-point ;  how  does  he  show  up  from  the  view-point 
of  other  New  Testament  writers  and  what  was  Jesus'  estimate 
of  him? 

7.  What  noted  characteristic  of  Peter  gave  him  prominence? 

8.  What  his   chief   weakness  and   its   cause? 

9.  Give  illustrations  of  his  presumption. 

10.  What  ground  for  comfort  in  the  life  of  Peter? 

11.  What  the  first  event  of  his  life  that  made  a  great  impres- 
sion on  him? 

12.  What  the  second  thing  that  impressed  him,  the  incident 
that  led  up  to  it,  and  the  impression  on  his  mind? 

13.  What  the  next  event  that  impressed  him? 

14.  How  did  Peter  try  to  "corner"  salvation? 

15.  What  was  Peter's  first  missionary  work  and  what  in  his 
report  unlike  our   missionary   reports? 

16.  What  was  Peter's  first  great  confession,  and  what  the 
occasion  for  it? 


XVII 

THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  (continued) 
Scriptures:  All  References 

IN  THE  preceding  chapter  the  question  was  asked: 
"What  incidents  in  Peter's  life  most  impressed  them- 
selves upon  his  own  life,  judging  mainly  from  his 
literary  remains,  to-wit :  His  gospel  through  Mark,  his 
speeches  in  the  Acts,  and  his  letters?"  In  answering 
that  question,  the  following,  out  of  many  incidents,  were 
cited,  in  the  chronological  order  in  the  Broadus  Har- 
mony: 

(i)  His  first  interview  with  our  Lord,  and  probable 
conversation,  John  i :  40-42 ;  Harmony,  page  19. 

(2)  His  call  to  the  ministry,  Mark  i :  16-17;  Harmony, 
page  28. 

(3)  The  revelation  of  his  sinfulness  through  a  reali- 
zation of  Christ's  presence  and  divine  power,  Luke  5:1- 
II ;  Harmony,  page  29. 

(4)  Christ  in  his  home,  Mark  i :  29-34 ;  Harmony, 
page  29. 

(5)  His  ordination  as  an  apostle,  Mark  3  :  14-17 ;  Har- 
mony, page  45. 

(6)  His  being  sent  out  to  preach  away  from  Christ, 
the  accompanying  instructions,  the  work,  and  the  report 
of  it,  Mark  10:  1-42;  Mark  6:7-30;  Harmony,  pages  71 
to  76. 

(7)  His  walking  on  the  water,  Math.  14:22-36;  Har- 
mony, page  80. 

198 


THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  (Continued)        199 

(8)  His  first  great  confession,  John  6:61-71;  Har- 
mony, pages  82  to  83. 

Out  of  the  many  references  to  Peter  in  the  gospels, 
those  eight  were  particularly  discussed  as  bearing  upon 
his  character  and  growth,  his  own  impressions,  and  the 
audacity  and  weakness  of  his  faith. 

Now,  this  chapter  resumes  the  discussion: 

(9)  His  greater  confession  at  Caesarea  Philippi,  Math. 
16: 13-20,  Harmony,  pages  89-90.  The  reader  will  note 
that  on  the  first  interview  with  Peter  our  Lord  said, 
"Thou  shalt  be  called  Cephas."  Now,  at  the  conclusion 
of  Peter's  great  confession  here,  that  promise  was  ful-s 
filled.  He  became  Cephas,  ai  stone :  "Thou  Art  Peter," 
and  from  Peter's  own  words  as  to  the  real  foundation  ofl 
the  church  and  of  his  relation  to  that  foundation  as  a: 
living  stone,  we  get  a  comment  in  I  Peter  2:4-8,  where 
he  makes  it  very  clear  that  the  foundation  of  the  church  is 
Christ,  the  rock ;  he  does  not  understand  that  the  church 
is  built  upon  him.  He  was  not  bothered  as  a  great  many 
modern  theologians  in  interpreting  that  passage  in  Math. 
16,  and  they  would  have  saved  themselves  a  great  deal  of 
trouble  if  they  had  allowed  Peter,  to  whom  the  words 
were  addressed,  to  give  his  own  inspired  understanding 
of  what  Christ  meant.  And  it  seems  always  to  me  that 
there  must  be  disrespect  for  the  inspiration  of  Peter  when 
any  man  says  that  in  Math.  16:  18  the  rock  upon  which 
the  church  was  built  was  Peter,  and  it  is  disrespect  also 
for  Paul,  because  he  is  just  as  clear  as  Peter:  "Other 
foundation  can  no  man  lay  than  that  which  is  laid,  Christ 
Jesus."  Peter  says  that  he  is  a  living  stone  in  the  Temple, 
but  that  Christ  is  the  elect  precious  stone  which  consti- 
tutes the  foundation,  and  that  is  the  true  conception  of  it. 
Peter  does  not  understand  from  this  passage  by  the 
promise  of  the  keys,  that  he  was  to  open  the  door  of  the 


200  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

church  (that  is,  to  declare  its  entrance  terms)  to  both 
Jews  and  Gentiles. 

This  appears  in  the  subsequent  history ;  in  Acts  2  Peter, 
standing  up  in  Christ's  completed  church  and  his  Spirit- 
filled  church  (for  the  Spirit  that  day  filled  it),  and  under 
inspiration  opened  the  door,  and  from  the  inside,  mark 
you,  to  the  Jews — representative  Jews  from  all  over  the 
world,  and  told  them  how  they  could  get  in.  This  is 
evident  from  Acts  10.  There  Peter  opened  the  door  to 
the  Gentile  world,  using  these  words :  "To  Christ  all 
the  prophets  bear  witness  that  through  His  name  whoso- 
ever believeth  in  Him  shall  receive  forgiveness  of  sins." 
And  in  Acts  15  he  avows  that  that  privilege  was  con- 
ferred on  him.  In  the  discussion  that  took  place  in 
Acts  15  he  commences  by  saying,  "Brethren,  you  remem- 
ber that  how  through  me,  or  in  me,  the  Lord  made  selec- 
tion from  among  you  about  opening  the  door  to  the  Gen- 
tiles." It  is  also  evident  from  this  passage  that  Peter 
held  the  first  place  among  the  twelve  apostles  to  the  cir- 
cumcision. As  a  distinguished  Roman  Catholic  historian 
puts  it,  "Primus  inter  pares."  That  means  first  among 
equals,  and  this  appears  further  from  the  fact  that  in 
the  four  lists  of  the  twelve  apostles  his  name  is  always 
first,  and  from  the  further  fact  that  in  the  subsequent 
history  he  invariably  took  the  lead.  But  Peter  did  not 
understand  that  this  priority  conferred  upon  him  the 
papal  autocratic  jurisdiction  claimed  by  the  Roman 
Catholics,  and  this  appears  from  his  subsequent  conduct 
in  the  following  instances:  In  Acts  11  the  church  at 
Jerusalem  holds  him  to  account  for  going  in  and  eating 
with  the  Gentiles,  and  instead  of  answering  them  by  au- 
thority, he  answered  them  by  an  explanation,  which  was 
accepted.  Then,  in  Galatians  2,  when  the  question  came 
up  of  Paul's  entirely  independent  gospel  and  jurisdiction 


THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  (Continued)         201 

that  occurred  at  Jerusalem,  on  that  occasion  Peter  con- 
ceded Paul's  entire  independence  and  his  appointment 
to  be  the  apostle  to  the  Gentiles,  and  gave  him  the  right 
hand  of  fellowship. 

It  further  appears  from  this  passage  in  his  first  letter: 
"The  elders  therefore  among  you  I  exhort,  who  am  a 
fellow  elder  and  a  witness  of  the  sufferings  of  Christ, 
who  am  also  a  partaker  of  the  glory  that  shall  be  re- 
vealed. Feed  the  flock  of  God  which  is  among  you,  exer- 
cising the  oversight  thereof,  not  of  constraint,  but 
willingly  according  to  the  will  of  God,  not  for  filthy  lucre 
but  of  a  ready  mind.  Neither  as  being  lords  over  the 
charge  allotted  to  you,  but  making  yourselves  examples 
to  the  flock.  And  when  the  Chief  Shepherd  shall  be 
manifested  from  heaven  you  shall  receive  a  crown  of 
glory  that  fadeth  not  away."  From  this  passage  we  see 
that  while  Peter  considered  himself  an  elder,  an  apostle, 
and  a  shepherd,  he  puts  himself  on  a  level  with  other 
apostles  and  with  other  elders  and  with  the  Chief  Shep- 
herd over  all,  who  is  Jesus  Christ  himself,  and  that  this 
oversight  which  he  exercises  is  not  an  oversight  by  con- 
straint, nor  for  money,  but  as  an  example.  It  is  impos- 
sible for  a  man  to  put  it  any  more  plainly  than  Peter  does, 
how  he  understood  the  priority  conferred  upon  him  on 
account  of  his  great  confession  in  Math.  i6. 

(lo)  His  great  presumption  in  tempting  Christ  to  shun 
the  cross  and  our  Lord's  severe  rebuke,  Mark  8:31  to 
9:1;  Harmony,  page  91.  Though  Peter  had  made  a 
confession  that  Jesus  was  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living 
God,  he  had  not  up  to  that  time  got  into  his  mind  the 
necessity  for  the  death  of  Christ,  Christ  as  an  expiatory 
sacrifice,  and  so  when  our  Lord  after  that  confession, 
began  to  lead  them  into  the  new  idea  of  the  Messiah, 
that  He  was  to  be  a  vicarious  offering,  Peter's  presump- 


202  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

tion  manifested  itself  by  tempting  Christ  to  shun  the 
cross.  Now  to  show  what  impression  that  made  on  Peter's 
mind  after  Christ  corrected  him,  read  what  he  says  in 
his  first  letter,  first  chapter,  i8th  and  19th  verses.  Peter 
does  not  shun  the  cross  now.  He  has  learned  better,  and 
he  tells  the  people  that  they  are  purchased,  not  with  silver 
and  gold,  but  with  the  precious  blood  of  Christ. 

(11)  The  next  incident  that  impressed  his  mind  was 
his  witnessing  our  Lord's  transfiguration,  Mark  9:2-13; 
Harmony,  pages  92  and  93.  Peter's  witness  of  that 
transfiguration  showed  himself  yet  to  be  a  learner.  He 
misconstrued  the  presence  of  Moses  and  of  Elijah,  and 
said,  "Let  us  build  here  three  tabernacles,  one  for  Moses 
[we  will  still  hold  on  to  Moses]  and  one  for  Elijah,  and 
one  for  Christ."  And  he  was  rebuked  by  a  voice  saying, 
"This  is  my  beloved  Son,  hear  ye  Him !  You  can't  asso- 
ciate Moses  and  Elijah  with  Christ  as  equal  teachers." 

Now  the  true  import  of  that  transfiguration  Peter  did 
not  get  in  his  mind  right  then,  but  he  got  it  later  as  we 
see  from  his  second  letter,  first  chapter,  i6th  to  i8th 
verses :  "For  we  did  not  follow  cunningly  devised  fables, 
when  we  made  known  unto  you  the  power  and  coming  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  but  we  were  eye-witnesses  of 
His  majesty.  For  He  received  from  God  the  Father 
honor  and  glory,  when  there  was  borne  such  a  voice  to 
Him  by  the  majestic  Glory,  "This  is  my  beloved  Son,  in 
whom  I  am  well  pleased :  and  this  voice  we  ourselves 
heard  borne  out  of  the  heavens,  when  we  were  with  Him 
in  the  holy  mount."  Now,  that  transfiguration  scene 
never  passed  out  of  Peter's  mind.  He  understood  it,  at 
last,  to  be  a  miniature  representation  of  the  power  and 
coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  In  other  words, 
Christ's  transfiguration  is  the  way  in  which  He  will  come 
in  His  glory. 


THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  (Continued)        203 

In  the  next  place,  when  He  comes  in  His  glory,  His 
power  is  manifest  in  two  directions :  He  raises  the  dead, 
represented  by  the  appearance  of  Moses  there,  and  He 
changes  the  living,  represented  by  Elijah,  who  was  one 
of  God's  Old  Testament  instances  of  transfiguration. 
That  will  be  the  power  of  His  second  coming,  the  in- 
stantaneous change  of  the  living  and  the  raising  of  the 
dead. 

Then  again  Peter  understood  it  to  mean  that  the  law 
led  up  to  Christ.  It  was  a  school-master  unto  Christ. 
That  prophecy  foreshadowed  Christ  as  represented  by 
Elijah.  Now  Peter  got  the  right  idea,  at  last,  of  the 
transfiguration.  I  am  citing  these  cases  to  show  what 
particular  instances  in  his  own  life  made  the  deepest  im- 
pression on  his  own  mind. 

(12)  Now  we  go  to  the  next  one,  the  Temple-tax, 
Math.  14:24-27;  Harmony,  page  97.  The  facts  of  the 
case  are  these:  The  tax-gatherer  came  to  Peter  and 
said,  "Does  your  Master  pay  Temple-tax  ?"  Now  Peter, 
instead  of  referring  that  question  to  Jesus  to  be  an- 
swered by  Him — he  always  thinks  he  is  competent  to 
speak  for  anybody — says,  "Yes."  They  replied,  "Well, 
then,  pay  it."  And  he  did  not  have  any  money.  Peter 
takes  the  case  to  the  Lord,  and  the  Lord  shows  him  that 
His  answer  was  an  answer  of  ignorance ;  that  there  was 
no  obligation  resting  upon  him  to  pay  that  tax,  but  to 
get  Peter  out  of  his  dilemma,  He  gives  him  directions  to 
go  cast  a  hook  into  the  sea,  take  out  a  fish,  and  find  the 
money  in  the  fish's  mouth  to  pay  for  Peter  and  Jesus. 
Now  that  lesson  made  an  impression  on  Peter's  mind,  and 
so  when  we  come  to  his  letters  he  gives  directions  in  his 
first  letter,  second  chapter,  13th  to  i6th  verse,  about  hon- 
oring the  powers  that  be,  and  the  paying  of  tribute,  and 
closes  by  saying  substantially,  "Even  when  you  waive  a 


204  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

right  to  do  it,  pay  it  through  expediency,  that  ye  be  not 
evil  spoken  of."  Like  Paul,  he  never  would  waive  a 
duty  or  principle,  but  when  it  was  a  privilege  or  right, 
personal  to  himself,  and  by  waiving  it  he  could  do  some 
good,  he  would  waive  it.  We  may  always  waive  a  right, 
as  Paul  says,  "Meat  offered  to  idols  is  nothing,  nothing  to 
God.  I  know  that  everything  that  God  has  made  is  clean, 
if  you  receive  it  with  thankfulness."  But  he  says,  "If 
my  eating  that  meat  oflfered  to  an  idol  will  cause  some 
weak  brother  to  stumble  and  fall,  I  will  never  eat  any 
meat  oflfered  to  idols  as  long  as  I  live."  "AM  things  are 
lawful,  but  not  expedient."  Now  that  is  the  great  lesson 
Peter  got  from  the  Temple-tax  business. 

(13)  Let  us  now  take  up  the  lesson  on  how  often  to 
forgive  a  penitent  brother.  Math.  18:20-35;  Harmony, 
page  loi.  A  practical  question  came  up  in  Peter's  life 
when  the  Lord  said,  "If  thy  brother  repent,  forgive  him." 
Peter  says,  "Lord,  how  often,  seven  times?"  as  if  he 
had  an  idea  there  ought  to  be  a  limit  to  it.  "You  can't 
spend  your  life  forgiving  a  fellow ;  now  how  often — 
seven  times?"  Jesus  says,  "Seventy  times  seven."  That 
question  of  Peter's  comes  up  in  our  lives.  I  heard  a  very 
distinguished  deacon  once  make  a  snarling  speech  in  a 
church  conference  when  a  certain  man  came  before  the 
church  and  asked  forgiveness,  and  Dr.  Burleson,  with  his 
customary  suavity  and  with  a  strict  adherence  to  scrip- 
ture, advised  the  church  to  forgive  him.  This  deacon  got 
up  and  said,  "I  would  like  to  know  what  will  be  the  end 
of  that?  We  have  spent  a  good  part  of  our  life  as  a 
church  in  forgiving  that  man,  and  I  don't  want  to  dig 
about  about  him  any  longer."  To  show  you  how  that 
thought  impresses  Peter,  when  he  wrote  his  letter  he 
says,  "Have  fervent  love  towards  each  other,  remember- 
ing that  love  covers  a  multitude  of  sins."    "If  you  love 


THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  (Continued)        205 

anybody,  you  can  keep  forgiving  him."  A  father  here  on 
earth  will  forgive  his  child  for  doing  wrong  on  penitence 
a  good  many  times  more  than  he  will  forgive  another 
one's  child.  He  loves  his  child  more ;  the  relation  is 
dearer.  Now,  the  Lord  wanted  to  teach  Peter  that  when 
he  got  deep  into  the  thought  of  the  heart  of  God's  love, 
there  was  no  limit ;  that  love  would  be  like  the  two  sons 
of  Noah  who  took  a  mantle  between  them  and  walked 
backwards  and  covered  up  the  sins  of  their  father.  Love 
covers  a  multitude  of  sins. 

(14)  The  reward  at  the  earth's  regeneration,  Math. 
19:27-30;  Harmony,  pages  133  and  134.  There  Peter 
puts  a  question  on  rewards:  "Lord,  we  have  left  all  to 
follow  thee,  what  shall  we  have?"  "Now,  we  have  given 
up  everything;  we  are  standing  by  you  while  all  the 
world  is  turning  away  from  you.  What  shall  we  have?" 
Our  Lord  replied  to  him  that  there  should  be  a  reward 
in  this  life  equal  to  a  hundred  fold.  Not  in  kind,  but  in 
other  things.  Then  He  goes  on  to  speak  of  the  true  re- 
ward that  would  come  at  the  regeneration — not  the  re- 
generation of  man,  but  the  regeneration  of  the  earth. 
"You  that  have  followed  me  in  the  regeneration  shall 
sit  on  twelve  thrones,  judging  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel. 
That  is  the  reward  ye  shall  have."  But  the  thing  that 
fastened  itself  most  on  Peter's  mind  was  that  idea  of 
the  regeneration,  the  restoration  of  all  things,  and  that 
the  eye  of  the  Christian  should  be  fixed  rather  upon  the 
rewards  that  followed  that  than  upon  anything  that  takes 
place  here  in  time.  Now  to  show  how  that  impressed 
him,  in  his  speech  in  Acts  3,  he  refers  to  it :  "Whom  the 
heavens  must  receive  [referring  to  Jesus,  who  is  gone 
into  heaven]  until  the  time  of  the  restoration  of  all 
things."  And  in  his  2nd  letter,  third  chapter,  7th  to  13th 
verse,  he  unfolds  the  whole  doctrine  of  the  regeneration 


206  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

of  the  earth.  He  says  that  the  earth  once  passed  through 
a  purgation  by  the  waters  of  the  flood,  and  shall  pass 
through  a  purgation  by  fire,  and  that  there  shall  be  a  new 
heaven  and  a  new  earth,  and  he  bases  a  strong  exhortation 
upon  the  fact  that  "The  heavens  shall  be  rolled  together 
as  a  scroll,  and  the  elements  shall  be  melted  with  fervent 
heat.  Seeing,  then,  that  all  of  these  things  shall  be  dis- 
solved, what  manner  of  men  ought  ye  to  be  in  all  holy 
conversation,  and  Godliness,  and  walk  here  in  this  time." 

(15)  Our  Lord's  great  prophecy,  Mark  13  and  Math. 
24  and  25.  That  prophecy  is  found  in  Mathew  24  and 
25,  but  Peter's  connection  with  it  is  stated  in  Mark  13:3 
and  the  whole  account  of  it  may  be  seen  in  the  Harmony, 
pages  160  to  168,  inclusive.  Peter  puts  a  question  that 
calls  forth  that  great  prophecy,  covering  two  whole  chap- 
ters of  Matthew,  parts  of  Mark  and  of  Luke,  and  made 
a  lasting  impression  on  the  mind  of  Peter.  To  show 
something  of  the  impression  that  it  made  upon  his  mind, 
I  will  cite  an  occasion.  In  I  Peter  3  :  20,  II  Peter  2  :  5,  and 
3 :  1-6,  that  is,  three  times  he  brings  out  in  his  letters  the 
reference  to  our  Lord's  great  prophecy. 

(16)  The  lesson  of  Christ  washing  his  feet.  We  find 
the  account  of  that  in  John  13:7-10;  Harmony,  page 
174.  Notice  what  the  points  are:  According  to  the 
Mosaic  law,  they  had  at  their  place  of  residence,  or 
wherever  they  were  abiding,  performed  the  bodily  ablu- 
tion preceding  the  passover,  but  they  had  to  pass  from 
that  to  the  upper  room,  where  they  were  to  eat  the  pass- 
over,  and  in  passing  from  it  they  got  their  feet  dusty,  as 
they  had  only  sandals  on  their  feet,  so  that  when  they 
got  into  the  house  the  custom  was  that  at  the  door  the 
sandals  were  taken  off  and  their  feet  were  washed  and 
water  was  always  provided  for  that.  So  that  a  man  who 
had  complied  with  the  regular  ablution  prescribed  by 


THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  (Continued)        207 

law,  needed  only  to  wash  his  feet,  but  as  that  was  not  a 
home  where  a  host  would  provide  for  washing  the  feet 
of  guests,  but  an  upper  room  in  which  they  were  to  make 
their  preparations,  the  question  came  up :  "Who  shall  do 
the  feet-washing?"  there  being  no  servant  there  to  do  it 
for  them.  "What  about  it?"  Peter  would  say,  "I  cannot 
do  it,  because  I  am  first  of  the  apostles — Primus  inter 
pares."  And  there  was  a  dispute  among  them  while  they 
were  going  there  as  to  who  was  the  greatest.  They 
wanted  to  make  some  one  small  enough  to  wash  feet. 
Christ  knew  about  their  contention;  it  was  a  little  thing 
on  so  great  an  occasion  to  cause  a  disturbance.  So  they 
concluded  they  would  go  in  and  recline  at  the  table  and 
eat  the  passover  without  washing,  whereupon  Jesus  arose 
and  girded  himself,  taking  a  towel  and  a  basin.  They 
were  reclining  on  their  left  elbow  with  their  feet  stretched 
out  behind  them.  Christ  walked  around  the  horse-shoe 
table  and  began  to  wash  their  feet.  Nobody  said  a  word 
until  He  got  to  Peter.  Peter  said,  "Lord,  do  you  wash 
my  feet?"  "Yes."  "Lord,  you  shall  never  wash  my 
feet."  Jesus  said,  "Well,  if  I  wash  thee  not,  thou  hast 
no  part  with  me."  "Then,  Lord,  wash  me  all  over."  The 
lesson  there  needed  was  the  lesson  of  humility,  service 
and  hospitality.  That  was  what  was  needed  and  they 
were  too  proud  to  do  it,  whereupon  Jesus,  their  Lord 
and  Master,  took  the  lowly  part  upon  himself.  Peter 
never  forgot  that.  In  his  letter  there  is  an  evident  refer- 
ence to  it,  I  Peter  5 : 5,  where  he  exhorts  against  strife, 
and  that  we  should  gird  ourselves  with  humility  to  serve 
one  another. 

(17)  This  incident  perhaps  made  more  impression  on 
Peter's  mind  than  anything,  and  that  was  Christ's  warn- 
ing against  Satan's  sifting  of  Peter  and  the  other  apostles, 
and  of  Peter's  failing,  and  His  promising  to  pray  for 


208  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Peter  that  his  faith  fail  not,  and  His  direction  to  Peter 
that  when  he  was  converted  from  the  error  that  he  held 
that  he  would  strengthen  his  brethren.  That  lesson  ap- 
pears in  Luke  22  :  31-33  ;  in  Mark  14 :  29-31,  and  we  must 
consider  in  connection  with  it  the  three  denials  of  Peter 
that  took  place  afterwards.  Those  denials  appear  in 
Math.  26;  Mark  14;  Luke  22;  John  18,  and  the  whole 
matter    is    set    forth    in    the    Harmony:    176-177    and 

193-195- 

That  transaction,  that  trial  of  Peter's  faith,  that  sifting 
of  Peter  by  Satan,  that  intercession  of  Christ  which 
kept  his  faith  from  failing,  the  awful  bitterness  with 
which  he  regrets  his  fall — we  see  how  it  impressed  him  in 
the  following  passages.  There  is  a  reminder  of  it  in 
the  scene  described  in  John  21 :  1-17.  As  Peter  had  de- 
nied Christ  three  times,  Christ  asked  him  the  same  ques- 
tion three  times  over.  But  we  get  Peter's  own  words 
in  I  Peter  i :  6-7.  He  says,  "The  trial  of  man's  faith  is 
more  precious  than  the  trial  of  gold  by  fire."  In  I  Peter 
1 : 3-5  he  strengthens  the  brethren  as  Christ  commanded 
him  to  do.  His  error  was  that  he  could  hold  on  to  Christ 
himself,  hence  he  says,  "Who  are  kept  by  the  power  of 
God  through  faith  unto  salvation."  Before  that  he 
thought  he  was  keeping  himself.  We  see  the  thought 
again  brought  out  in  I  Peter  5:5-10.  He  believes  in  a 
devil  now,  and  he  warns  them  that  "their  adversary,  the 
devil,  goeth  about  as  a  roaring  lion."  He  warns  them 
against  over-confidence :  "God  resisteth  the  proud  but 
giveth  grace  to  the  humble."  Just  as  if  he  had  repeated 
the  old  proverb:  "Pride  goeth  before  destruction  and  a 
haughty  spirit  before  a  fall,"  and  urges  them  to  watch 
themselves. 

(18)  Christ's  resurrection  and  appearance  to  Peter. 
We  find  the  account  of  it  in  Luke  24:33-35,  and  I  Cor. 


THE  LIFE  OF  PETER  (Continued)        209 

15  :  5,  and  in  the  Harmony,  page  224.  If  we  read  Peter's 
speech,  recorded  in  Acts  2 :  22-36,  and  his  great  speech 
in  Acts  3 :  11-16,  and  his  great  speech.  Acts  10 :  38-43,  we 
see  what  a  tremendous  impression  was  made  upon  Peter's 
mind  by  the  resurrection  of  Christ  and  His  appearance 
to  him. 

(19)  Christ's  words  to  Thomas,  which  Peter  heard, 
John  20 :  24-29 ;  Harmony,  pages  225  and  226 :  "Thomas, 
you  beheve  because  you  have  seen.  Blessed  are  those 
who,  not  seeing,  believed."  Peter  quoted  that  very  thing 
in  his  first  letter,  i :  8.  This  shows  what  an  impression 
it  made  on  him. 

(20)  The  solemn  lessons  at  the  Sea  of  Galilee; 
Christ's  questions  and  Peter's  answers,  John  21:1-17; 
Harmony,  pages  226-227.  First,  Peter  had  gone  back  to 
his  secular  business.  Second,  Christ  meant  him  to  be  a 
fisher  of  men,  and  not  of  fish,  and  a  shepherd  of  spiritual 
flocks.  Third,  Christ  wanted  proof  of  his  faith  in  Him, 
trusting  Him  to  take  care  of  him  and  his  love  for  Him. 
That  great  lesson  received  a  reflection  in  I  Peter  5 : 2-4. 

(21)  The  prediction  of  the  manner  of  his  death,  John 
21 :  18-19 ;  Harmony,  page  22^,  reflected  in  II  Peter  i :  14. 
In  that  letter  he  tells  that  the  Lord  made  known  unto 
him  how  he  was  to  die. 

(22)  The  22nd  incident  is  his  baptism  in  the  Holy 
Spirit,  Acts  2: 1-18,  and  the  reflection  of  that  in  full  in 
I  Peter  1:12. 

(23)  A  class  of  incidents :  Peter's  suffering  for  Christ. 
He  was  arrested  five  times:  Acts  4:3;  3:18;  5:26; 
12 : 3  ;  John  21:18.  He  was  in  prison  four  times :  Acts 
4:3;  5:18;  12:3;  John  21:18.  He  was  beaten  with 
stripes  one  time:  Acts  5:40.  He  was  crucified:  John 
21 :  19.  Those  were  Peter's  individual  sufferings.  To 
see  how  those  sufferings  impressed  his  mind,  all  we  have 


glO  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

to  do  is  to  read  I  Peter  i :  6-7  and  particularly  I  Peter 
4:12-19. 

(24)  A  class  of  incidents :  His  contact  with  Paul. 
These  contacts  were  Acts  9 :  26-30  construed  with  Gala- 
tians  1:18;  Acts  15:1-29,  construed  with  Galatians 
2:  i-io;  Gal.  2:  11-21.  To  see  how  these  contacts  with 
Paul  impressed  Peter,  let  us  read  II  Peter  3:  15-16. 

(25)  His  vision  at  Joppa.  Several  times  in  his  letters 
he  refers  to  what  God  has  cleansed. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What   Peter's   second   or   greater  confession? 

2.  What  promise  fulfilled  here? 

3.  What    Peter's    understanding    of    the    foundation    of    the 
church,  and  his  relation  to  it?     Proof? 

4.  What  did  he  understand  by  "the  keys  of  the  kingdom?" 

5.  On  what  two  occasions  did  he  use  these  keys? 

6.  What  place   did   he   hold  among   the   apostles   to   the   cir- 
cumcision?    Proof? 

7.  Did  he    understand   that  his  priority  conferred   upon   him 
the  papal  jurisdiction  as  claimed  by  the  Catholics?     Give  proof. 

8.  For  what  did  Jesus  severely  rebuke  Peter,  and  how  does 
he  show  the  impression  it  made  on  his  mind? 

9.  How    did    Peter   understand    the    transfiguration    at    first? 
Later? 

10.  What  great  lesson  did   Peter  get  out  of  the  incident  of 
the  Temple-tax? 

11.  How  does  Peter  express  his  impression  of  Christ's  teach- 
ing on  forgiveness? 

12.  Give  Peter's  elaboration  of  Christ's  teaching  on  the  regen- 
eration of  the  earth,  and  rewards. 

13.  What    reference    in    his    letter    to    the    incident    of    foot- 
washing? 

14.  What    event    probably    impressed    him    most,    and    what 
references  to  it   in  his   letter? 

15.  Describe  his  sufferings   for  Christ  by  answering  the  fol- 
lowing questions: 

(a)  How  many  times  arrested? 

(b)  How  many  times  imprisoned    ? 

(c)  How  many  times  beaten  with  stripes? 

(d)  How  did  he  die? 

(e)  What  impressions  made  on  his  mind  by  these  suf- 

ferings, and  where  do  we  find  them? 

16.  What  the  contacts  with  Paul,  and  what  their  impressions 
on  him? 


XVIII 

INTRODUCTION  TO  I  PETER 
Scripture:  All  References  and  i :  i-6 

IN  THE  general  introduction  to  his  first  letter,  we 
have  devoted  two  chapers  to  the  New  Testament  life 
of  Peter.  So  far,  I  have  had  nothing  to  say  of 
Peter's  life  according  to  tradition  and  legend,  after  giving 
the  accounts  in  the  New  Testament.  My  reason  for  not 
going  into  that  is  that  the  whole  business  is  so  very  shaky ; 
there  is  a  vast  amount  of  it  we  know  to  be  forgery,  but 
I  am  impressed  that  this  much  of  the  legend  is  true :  that 
Peter  did  finally  go  to  Rome,  and  suffered  martyrdom 
there. 

We  now  take  up  the  special  introduction  to  I  Peter, 
and  answer  the  following  questions: 

1.  Who  wrote  this  letter? 

2.  To  whom  was  it  written? 

3.  By  whom  was  it  written? 

4.  Where  was  it  written? 

5.  What  is  its  theme? 

6.  What  is  the  letter  ? 

7.  When  was  it  written  ? 

8.  What  was  the  occasion  of  the  letter? 

9.  What    its    relations    to    previous    New    Testament 
books? 

The  answers  are:  First,  Who  wrote  this  letter?  Peter, 
an  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ.    There  are  three  strong  over- 
all 


212  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

whelming  arguments  in  favor  of  ascribing  this  letter  to 
Peter : 

(a)  The  letter  so  states,  (b)  The  internal  evidence  is 
very  strong  that  Peter  wrote  it.  (c)  The  universal  testi- 
mony of  primitive  Christendom  is  that  Peter  did  write  it. 

Now  opposed  to  Peter's  authorship  are  some  objec- 
tions by  the  radical  critics  that  are  hardly  worth  consid- 
ering. I  will  tell  on  what  ground  they  base  their  objec- 
tions, but  I  am  not  going  to  discuss  it,  for  I  do  not  hon- 
estly think  it  is  worth  while.  They  first  adopt  this  theory, 
that  there  was  an  antagonism  between  the  teaching  of 
Peter  and  the  teaching  of  Paul,  and  that  this  first  letter 
is  so  manifestly  in  agreement  with  Paul  that  therefore 
Peter  did  not  write  it.  That  is  the  ground  of  their  ob- 
jection, put  in  a  few  words.  They  assume  a  premise 
without  a  particle  of  evidence,  and  then  on  the  ground 
of  that  premise  deny  Peter's  authorship. 

Second,  To  whom  was  it  written? 

(i)  The  letter  says:  "To  sojourners  of  the  disper- 
sion"— Jews  and  proselytes.  The  Greek  word,  "dias- 
pora," referring  to  a  dispersion  of  the  Jews  has  a  sig- 
nification in  New  Testament  literature,  and  in  the  lit- 
erature of  the  times,  that  does  not  admit  of  contro- 
versy. It  means  those  Jews  who  were  originally  deported 
from  the  Holy  Land  by  certain  conquerors,  as  Sennach- 
erib, the  King  of  Babylon,  Pompey  and  others,  carried 
away   into   captivity   and   settled   in    foreign   countries. 

(2)  Those  Jews  that  for  purposes  of  trade  lived  out  of 
the  Holy  Land — and  this  constitutes  a  majority  of  the 
Jews.  A  certain  writer  states  that  they  are  in  the  whole 
world,  and  on  every  ocean ;  that  certainly  is  not  much  of 
a  hyperbole.  Alexander  the  Great  put  a  great  many  of 
them  at  Alexandria,  and  from  that  time  until  now  that 
city  has  ben  a  particular  home  of  the  Jews.     They  once 


INTRODUCTION  TO  I  PETER  213 

had  a  temple  in  Africa.  There  were  large  settlements  of 
these  Jews  in  Babylon,  from  which  place  Peter  seems  to 
write,  and  we  get  an  idea  of  the  countries  settled  by  the 
dispersion  from  Acts  2,  which  tells  us  that  devout  men 
came  from  every  nation  under  heaven  to  the  Passover 
and  heard  Peter's  great  sermon.  This  is  the  first  item : 
they  were  Jewish  sojourners  in  foreign  lands. 

Third,  this  letter  is  addressed  to  these  sojourners  in 
five  provinces  of  Asia  Minor,  as  follows :  Pontus,  Gala- 
tia,  Cappadocia,  Asia  and  Bithynia.  The  order,  on  the 
map,  in  which  these  places  are  named,  furnishes  an  argu- 
ment as  to  where  Peter  was  when  he  wrote  this  letter ; 
for  instance,  from  Rome  we  would  have  to  reverse  the 
order  in  speaking  of  it  and  say,  "Bithynia,  Asia, 
Cappadocia,  Galatia,  and  Pontus."  But  as  Peter  is 
over  in  Babylon  when  he  writes  them  the  order  is  just 
as  he  says :  "Pontus,  Galatia,  Cappadocia,  Asia,  and 
Bithynia." 

But  we  still  have  not  settled  all  the  questions,  "To 
whom  ?"  We  have  found  out  two  points ;  written  to  the 
Jews  of  the  dispersion,  and  written  to  the  Jews  of  the 
dispersion  in  five  provinces  of  Asia  Minor;  third,  writ- 
ten to  the  Jews  who  were  Christians,  or  professed  to  be 
Christians.  He  says,  "elect  sojourners."  Now,  that 
settles  the  question,  "To  whom?" 

Third,  Through  whom  was  this  letter  written?  I 
Peter  5 :  12,  answers  the  question.  By  Silvanus  or  Silas, 
as  he  is  sometimes  called,  which  means  the  same  person, 
and  it  is  that  very  Silas  who  was  with  Paul  on  his  sec- 
ond missionary  tour  described  in  Acts.  He  finally  trav- 
elled with  Peter,  though  he  first  travelled  with  Paul,  and 
noting  a  little  difference  in  the  style  of  the  First  Letter 
and  Second  Letter  of  Peter,  we  may  infer  that  when  it 
says  that  this  letter  was  written  by  Silas,  that  Silas  was 


214  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Peter's  amanuensis,  and  something  of  the  style  of  Silas 
crept  into  it.  We  see  how  the  style  of  a  document  may 
depend  somewhat  on  the  amanuensis. 

Fourth,  Where  was  it  written?  The  5th  Chapter  and 
13th  verse  says,  "The  elect  in  Babylon  salute  you — the 
elect  churches  in  Babylon  salute  you."  Here  the  ques- 
tion arises,  "Why  does  Peter  say  Babylon."  In  other 
words,  does  he  use  Babylon  in  its  literal  sense  or  sym- 
bolical sense,  as  John  does  in  the  Book  of  Revelation? 
There,  "Babylon"  is  a  figurative  or  symbolical  form.  A 
great  many  of  the  early  fathers — and  of  the  later  fathers 
— hold  that,  though  Peter  says  Babylon,  he  means  Rome, 
and  they  say,  with  all  Roman  Catholics,  that  Peter  wrote 
this  letter  from  Rome  and  called  it  Babylon,  because  at 
that  time  a  great  persecution  was  going  on  by  Nero  and 
therefore  he  used  a  symbolical  word.  If  it  were  not  for 
the  great  number  of  distinguished  names  that  support 
this  theory,  I  would  certainly  say  I  had  no  respect  for  it. 
This  letter  of  Peter  is  not  an  apocalyptic  book.  An 
apocalypse  is  written  in  symbolical  language.  When  it 
says  "woman,"  it  means  something  else,  not  a  woman ; 
when  it  says  "sea,"  it  means  something  else,  not  the  sea, 
etc.  And  so  all  the  way  through  it  is  a  symbolical  book. 
But  this  is  just  a  plain  book  of  prose,  and  if  Paul,  writ- 
ing near  the  same  time,  could  have  no  hesitation  in  re- 
ferring to  Rome,  I  don't  see  why  Peter  should,  and  so  I 
don't  believe  at  all  that  it  means  Rome  when  it  says, 
"Babylon."  Peter,  being  an  apostle,  travelled  a  good 
deal.  We  notice  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  how  he  left 
Jerusalem  and  went  to  Samaria,  and  another  time  went 
to  Lydda  and  Joppa  and  Caesarea,  and  another  expres- 
sion says  he  travelled  through  all  parts.  Now,  it  was  a 
very  natural  thing  that  Peter,  being  an  apostle  of  the 
circumcision,  should  follow  the  Jewish  migration  East 


INTRODUCTION  TO  I  PETER  215 

among  the  Semitic  people,  and  so  I  take  it  that  Babylon 
means  Babylon.  Mark,  who  also  travelled  with  Paul, 
has  joined  Peter  in  Babylon. 

Fifth,  What  is  the  theme  of  the  letter?  The  5th  chap- 
ter and  I2th  verse  tells  us  the  theme:  "I  have  written 
unto  you  briefly,  exhorting  and  testifying  that  this  is 
the  true  grace  of  God."  That  is  his  theme — the  true 
grace  of  God.  There  are  some  people  who  talk  a  great 
deal  about  grace  and  claim  to  be  the  subjects  of  grace, 
and  yet  live  a  life  contrary  to  the  teaching  of  grace,  and 
so  this  theme  is  a  splendid  one.  There  is  a  false  idea  of 
grace,  viz :  that  a  man  can  have  grace  and  yet  live  con- 
trary to  the  principles  of  grace.  So  the  object  of  the 
letter  is  to  give  a  true  account  of  the  grace  of  God. 

Sixth,  What  is  the  letter,  i.  e.,  what  is  its  character? 
Here  it  is :  "I  have  written  unto  you  briefly,  exhorting 
and  testifying."  The  style  of  it  is  exhortation  and  testi- 
mony. He  is  going  to  speak  as  a  witness  of  what  is  the 
true  grace,  and  then  he  is  going  to  deliver  an  exhortation 
based  upon  that  true  grace,  and  that  exactly  explains  the 
letter. 

Seventh,  When  was  it  written?  About  A.  D.  65,  just 
after  Paul's  last  letter  of  the  first  Roman  imprisonment 
was  written.  In  other  words,  we  would  place  I  Peter 
right  after  Hebrews.  The  order  is:  Philippians,  Phile- 
mon, Colossians,  Ephesians,  Hebrews,  then  I  Peter, 
A.  D.  65. 

Eighth,  What  was  the  occasion  of  the  letter?  Two 
elements,  judging  by  the  letter  itself,  enter  into  the  oc- 
casion. First,  those  to  whom  it  is  addressed  were  suf- 
fering very  great  persecution  and.  Second,  they  were 
much  affected  by  teachers  of  false  doctrine,  who  turned 
the  grace  of  God  into  lasciviousness.  Now  in  writing  it 
is  his  object  to  strengthen  and  comfort  these  persecuted 


216  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

people,  and  to  expose  all  false  notions  of  the  true  grace 
of  God. 

Ninth,  What  are  the  relations  of  this  letter  to  previous 
New  Testament  books?  The  gospel  of  Mark  was  the 
second  gospel  written,  supposedly  about  A.  D.  60,  and  as 
Peter  was  the  virtual  author  of  that,  it  is  called  Peter's 
gospel ;  it  is  easy  to  see  the  connection  between  this  letter 
and  Mark's  gospel.  He  had  been  acquainted  with  the 
gospel  of  Matthew  and  of  Luke,  but  certainly  not  with 
the  gospel  of  John.  We  do  know  from  the  letter  itself 
that  there  is  a  strong  relation  between  this  letter  and  the 
letter  of  James.  James  was  the  earliest  New  Testament 
book  written.  Now  there  is  a  very  marked  relation  be- 
tween this  letter  and  all  those  letters  of  Paul,  as  follows : 

I  and  H  Thessalonians.    That  is  the  first  group. 

I  and  H  Corinthians,  Galatians,  Romans.  That  is 
the  second  group. 

Philippians,  Philemon,  Colossians,  Ephesians,  and  He- 
brews.   That  is  the  third  group. 

I  am  a  little  doubtful  whether  he  had  yet  seen  the  let- 
ter to  the  Hebrews,  but  it  is  certain  that  he  had  before 
him  the  letter  to  the  Romans  and  the  letter  to  the  Ephe- 
sians, but  he  had  not  seen  Hebrews  before  he  wrote  his 
second  letter.  The  book  is  brimful  of  references  to  Paul's 
arguments  to  the  Romans  and  the  Ephesians.  In  II 
Peter,  he  refers  to  Paul's  writing  to  them,  the  people  to 
whom  he  is  writing,  that  is,  the  Jews  of  the  dispersion  of 
Asia  Minor.  I  think  he  makes  a  reference  to  Hebrews 
in  his  second  letter.  He  refers  to  all  of  Paul's  letters 
and  counts  them  scriptures.  It  is  perfectly  certain  that 
on  every  doctrine  of  grace  he  stands  squarely  with  Paul 
in  his  letters  to  the  Galatians,  Romans,  Ephesians,  and 
Colossians. 

Now  we  come  to  the  analysis  of  his  first  letter  and  I 


INTRODUCTION  TO  I  PETER  217 

give  what  is  called  an  expositor's  analysis.    The  first  item 
of  the  analysis  is  this : 

Peter's  doctrine  of  election  illustrating  the  work  of 
the  Trinity  in  the  salvation  of  men.  First  chapter,  ist 
and  2nd  verses,  represents  the  Trinity  in  the  work  of  sal- 
vation: "The  elect  according  to  the  foreknowledge  of 
God  the  Father  in  sanctification  of  the  Spirit  unto  obedi- 
ence and  sprinkling  of  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ."  There 
we  see  he  presents  the  whole  Trinity — the  Father,  Son, 
and  Holy  Spirit.  That  statement  of  the  doctrine  of  elec- 
tion in  a  few  words,  when  coupled  with  a  part  of  the 
first  chapter  of  his  second  letter,  gives  Peter's  whole 
idea  of  the  doctrine  of  election.  As  Peter  states  election, 
what  is  it?  It  means  chosen  to  salvation.  Who  elects? 
God  the  Father.  According  to  what  does  He  elect  ?  Ac- 
cording to  His  foreknowledge.  What  does  He  mean  by 
foreknowledge?  The  Greek  word  is  "prognosis": 
"nosis"  means  knowledge,  and  "pro"  (the  "g"  being  for 
euphony)  means  "before,"  or  "foreknowledge,"  and  that 
word  as  a  noun  is  used  only  by  Peter  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment. He  uses  it  three  times,  as  follows:  Acts  2:23; 
the  passage  here,  I  Peter  1:1,  and  in  I  Peter  i :  20.  These 
are  the  only  places  in  the  New  Testament  where  we  have 
the  word,  "prognosis,"  foreknowledge,  which  means  to 
know  beforehand.  But  both  Peter  and  Paul  use  the 
verb,  "prognosco,"  which  means  to  know  beforehand. 
Peter  uses  that  verb  in  II  Peter  3:17,  and  Paul  uses  it  in 
Acts  26 :  5  ;  Romans  8 :  29  and  11:2.  Both  Peter  and 
Paul  use  the  verb  once  to  talk  about  a  previous  happen- 
ing, i.  e.,  a  happening  before  the  time  of  which  he  is 
speaking.  Paul  says  that  the  Jews  had  known  him  be- 
forehand, and  Peter  uses  it  in  a  similar  way  where  it 
refers  to  men  knowing  one  thing  before  they  know  an- 
other thing.     We  have  nothing  to  do  with  that   fore- 


218  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

knowledge.  Paul  uses  that  word  with  reference  to  God 
foreknowing  His  people,  and  all  the  other  times  Peter 
speaks  of  God's  foreknowledge.  Now,  then,  the  question 
is :  What  does  foreknowledge  mean  ?  Foreknowledge  is 
used  by  Peter,  and  "to  foreknow"  is  used  by  Paul,  re- 
ferring to  God.  My  reason  for  putting  that  question  is, 
that  when  I  was  a  young  preacher,  a  Baptist  preacher 
who  was  a  good  man,  but  Arminian  in  his  theory, 
preached  a  sermon  on  election ;  and  he  said,  "election  is 
according  to  foreknowledge ;  God  foreknew  that  certain 
men  would  repent  and  believe,  and  having  before  seen 
they  would  repent  and  believe,  He  elected  them."  When 
he  got  through  I  told  him  that  the  New  Testament  use 
of  foreknowledge  was  just  about  equivalent  to  predes- 
tination, and  that  any  Greek  scholar  would  tell  him  so, 
and  that  election  was  not  based  upon  any  foreseen  good- 
ness in  man  or  any  foreseen  repentance  or  faith  in  man, 
but  that  repentance  and  faith  proceed  from  election,  and 
not  election  from  them.  So  that  what  Peter  means  by 
foreknowledge  is  just  about  the  same  as  predestination; 
that  in  eternity  God  determined  and  elected  according  to 
that  predestination. 

Now  we  proceed  with  Peter's  idea  of  the  election,  viz : 
(i)  This  election  is  in  sanctification  of  the  Spirit.  In 
other  words,  every  man  that  God  elects  to  be  saved  is 
renewed  in  regeneration  and  perfected  in  sanctification 
by  the  Holy  Spirit.    That  is  Peter's  idea  of  election. 

(2)  He  says,  "elect  unto  obedience  and  unto  the 
sprinkling  of  the  blood  of  Christ."  Every  man  who  is 
elected  has  the  blood  of  Christ  applied  to  him  and  has 
in  him  the  spirit  of  obedience  to  the  commandments  of 
God.  God  never  elected  a  man  to  disobedience,  but  he 
elected  him  to  obedience,  and  therefore  the  evidences  of 
our  election  are  to  be  sought  for  in  the  following  facts: 


INTRODUCTION  TO  I  PETER  219 

Have  I  any  reason  to  believe  that  I  have  been  regenerated, 
that  I  have  by  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  had  the  blood  of 
Christ  applied  to  me?  Have  I  in  me  the  spirit  of  obedi- 
ence to  Christ  ?  If  I  have,  that  is  evidence  to  me  that  I  am 
one  of  God's  elect,  because  these  things  are  fruits  of 
election.  In  other  words,  the  order  of  the  thought  is  this : 
The  Father,  in  eternity,  determined  and  chose  those  to 
be  saved. 

(3)  He  chose  them  to  be  saved  by  the  blood  of  Christ, 
and  to  be  renewed  and  sanctified  by  the  Holy  Spirit. 

(4)  He  chose  them  to  become  obedient,  so  that  elec- 
tion is  evidenced  by  calling,  and  by  faith  in  Christ,  by 
regeneration,  by  a  progress  in  holiness,  and  by  obedience. 
Now,  that  is  Peter's  doctrine  of  election. 

To  show  you  that  I  am  correct  in  it,  in  his  secofd 
letter  he  urges  Christians  to  make  their  calling  and  elec- 
tion sure.  What  did  he  mean  by  it?  He  does  not  mean 
to  make  it  sure  to  God,  for  God  knows  who  are  chosen, 
but  he  means  to  make  it  sure  to  themselves.  "Make 
your  election  sure  to  yourself."  He  has  just  told  them 
how  to  make  it  sure :  "Add  to  your  faith  virtue,  and  to 
virtue  knowledge,  and  to  knowledge  temperance,  and  to 
temperance  patience,  and  to  patience  Godliness,  and  to 
Godliness  brotherly  kindness,  and  to  brotherly  kindness 
charity.  For  if  these  things  be  in  you,  and  abound,  they 
make  you  that  ye  shall  neither  be  barren  nor  un- 
fruitful in  the  knowledge  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  But 
he  that  lacketh  these  things  is  blind,  and  cannot  see  afar 
oflf,  and  hath  forgotten  that  he  was  purged  of  his 
old  sins.  Wherefore,  make  your  calling  and  election 
sure." 

Now  by  that  use  of  it  we  can  see  how  Peter  could 
answer  a  question  put  to  him  on  the  question  of  elec- 
tion.    Peter,  who  are  the  elect?     He  says,  "I  will  let 


220  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

God  answer  that  question  from  His  side,  for  He  knows, 
but  when  you  ask  me  from  the  human  side  I  will  tell  you 
how  you  may  be  sure  that  you  are  elected.  If  you  have 
the  evidence  of  Christian  piety,  that  you  have  been  con- 
verted, been  renewed  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  have  in  you  the 
Spirit,  and  are  making  progress  in  holiness,  that  is  evi- 
dence that  you  are  one  of  the  elect."  And  we  can't  make 
it  sure  to  ourselves  in  any  other  way  in  the  world.  Now, 
if  we  could  climb  up  to  heaven  and  open  the  book  of 
life  and  see  who  are  enrolled  up  there,  we  might  look  at 
that  roll  and  see  whether  our  names  are  on  it ;  but  we 
can't  get  up  there,  and  the  doctrine  of  election  does  not 
say  that  God  chose  John  Jones  and  his  wife  and  one  of 
his  daughters  and  two  of  his  sons.  It  does  not  speak 
that  way,  and  so  our  only  way  of  determining  whether  we 
are  elected  is  as  I  have  shown.  Now,  the  doctrine  of 
election  in  Pendleton's  Manual,  as  recorded  in  the  Bap- 
tist Articles  of  Faith  is  the  view  of  Peter.  Now  that  is 
the  first  item  of  the  argument. 

Second  Item.  The  effect  of  Christ's  resurrection  on 
the  hope  of  His  disciples.  "Blessed  be  the  God  and 
Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who  according  to  His 
great  mercy  begat  us  again  unto  a  living  hope  by  the 
resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ  from  the  dead."  And  so  I 
make  that  the  second  item  in  the  expositor's  analysis. 
What  was  the  effect  of  Christ's  resurrection  on  the  hope 
of  His  disciples?  The  last  chapters  of  the  four  gospels 
show  how  depressed  Christ's  disciples  were  upon  His 
death.  They  all  forsook  Him  and  fled.  They  thought 
that  the  battle  was  lost.  The  two  on  their  way  to  Em- 
maus  said,  "We  had  trusted  that  this  was  he  that  should 
deliver  Israel,"  but  they  now  looked  upon  that  as  a  dead 
hope.  Now,  after  Christ  rose  from  the  dead,  and  they 
saw  Him  and  recognized  Him  by  many  infallible  proofs, 


INTRODUCTION  TO  I  PETER  221 

their  hope  revived  and  it  became  a  living  hope,  meaning  a 
hope  to  Hve  forever:  "He  hath  begotten  us  again  unto  a 
hving  hope  through  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ  from 
the  dead."  In  other  words,  if  Christ  had  stopped  at  His 
death  and  burial,  Christianity  would  have  been  absolutely 
dead  according  to  His  own  words,  for  He  gave  that  as 
the  sign  by  which  to  establish  all  of  His  claims — that 
He  would  rise  from  the  dead  on  the  third  day.  To  these 
depressed  disciples  the  resurrection  of  Christ  was  start- 
ling. It  had  a  tremendous  influence.  Listen  to  Thomas : 
"You  tell  me  He  is  risen.  You  couldn't  make  me  believe 
unless  I  put  my  fingers  in  the  print  of  the  nails  in  His 
hands,  and  thrust  my  hand  into  His  side."  And  yet  when 
he  met  Jesus  and  was  asked  to  do  just  what  he  requested, 
he  fell  at  the  feet  of  Jesus  and  said,  "My  Lord  and  my 
God !"  And  when  Jesus  stood  before  Mary,  who  was 
weeping,  she  said  to  Him,  "They  have  taken  away  my 
Lord,  and  I  know  not  where  they  have  laid  him."  And 
He  was  already  risen  and  she  turned  around  and  looked 
at  Him,  and  fell  at  his  feet  saying,  "Rabboni,"  that  is, 
"My  master,  my  Lord!" 

Easter  Sunday  is  the  Sunday  according  to  some  church 
calendars  that  commemorates  the  resurrection  of  Jesus 
Christ,  and  all  over  the  Christian  world  we  see  and  hear 
on  that  day  such  things  as  this :  "He  is  risen !  He  is 
risen  indeed."  If  we  were  in  Russia,  where  they  have 
a  formula  when  they  meet  on  this  Sunday,  we  would  hear 
one  say  to  another,  "Christ  is  risen,"  and  the  other  would 
reply,  "He  is  risen  indeed."  And  every  Roman  Catholic 
country  sets  apart  a  holiday  called  Easter  Sunday.  It  is 
a  composite  of  blended  Jewish,  Christian,  and  heathen 
elements,  but  it  certainly  does  exhibit  the  effect  of  the 
resurrection  of  Christ  upon  the  hope  of  His  disciples 
and  upon  nobody  more  than  upon  Peter.    When  Christ 


222  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

was  risen.  He  said,  "Go  and  tell  Peter."  Peter  had  de- 
nied Him.  When  He  appeared  to  James,  His  brother, 
James  was  converted. 

Now,  the  third  item  is  the  great  inheritance.  Here  it 
is:  "Unto  an  inheritance  incorruptible,  undefiled,  and 
that  fadeth  not  away,  reserved  in  heaven  for  you,  who 
by  the  power  of  God,  are  guarded  through  a  faith  unto 
salvation  ready  to  be  revealed  in  the  last  time." 

Now,  let  us  analyze  that  inheritance ;  this  living  hope  is 
unto  an  inheritance:  First,  what  is  the  character  of  it? 
There  are  three  characteristics  named:  (i)  It  is  incor- 
ruptible.    (2)  It  is  undefiled.     (3)  It  is  fadeless. 

If  we  inherit  money,  it  is  corruptible.  Some  men  re- 
fuse to  receive  gifts  from  certain  syndicates  because  they 
say  the  money  is  tainted,  defiled.  Riches  take  to  them- 
selves wings  and  fly  away ;  but  this  inheritance  is  incor- 
ruptible, undefiled,  and  fadeless.  Now,  when  are  they  to 
get  it?  "Reserved  in  heaven."  We  have  not  got  there 
yet.    Where  are  they  to  get  it?    "In  heaven." 

Abraham  did  not  get  his  inheritance  here.  He  sought 
a  city  which  hath  foundations,  whose  maker  and  builder 
is  God.  Hebrews  11  says  that  all  people  of  that  class,  or 
kind,  say  they  seek  a  country,  a  better  country,  which 
is  heaven.  Jesus  said  to  His  disciples  when  He  left 
them :  "I  go  to  prepare  a  place  for  you,  and  if  I  go  to 
prepare  a  place  for  you  I  will  come  again  and  receive 
you  unto  myself,  that  where  I  am  there  ye  may  be  also." 
And  the  letter  to  the  Hebrews  describes  that  place,  the 
New  Jerusalem,  the  heavenly  Jerusalem,  and  tells  of  its 
companionship :  human,  angelic,  and  divine. 

Now  the  character  of  the  inheritance,  the  time  of  the 
inheritance,  the  where  of  the  inheritance,  and  for  whom : 
"You  are  kept  by  the  power  of  God  through  faith  unto 
salvation."     The  inheritance  is  for  those  who  are  pre- 


INTRODUCTION  TO  I  PETER  223 

served  unto  the  second  advent  of  Christ,  and  whom  He 
preserves  through  their  faith.    So  I  make  the 

Fourth  Item,  Preservatior^  of  the  heirs.  In  Luke  22: 
31-32,  Jesus  says  to  Peter,  this  very  man :  "Simon,  Satan 
hath  obtained  you  apostles  by  asking  that  he  may  sift 
you  as  wheat,  but  I  have  prayed  for  thee  that  thy  faith 
fail  not,  and  when  thou  art  turned  from  thy  error, 
strengthen  thy  brethren."  Peter's  error  was  that  he 
could  keep  himself:  "Though  all  men  forsake  thee  yet 
I  will  not ;  I  hold  on."  When  the  devil  went  to  sift  Peter 
he  shook  Peter's  hold  loose  and  it  didn't  take  much  to 
do  it,  but  he  did  not  shake  Christ  loose  from  Peter. 
Christ  didn't  turn  Peter  loose,  and  Christ  says,  "Now 
when  you  are  converted  from  that  error,  strengthen  your 
brethren."  Here  he  is  doing  it.  "Who  kept  themselves  ?" 
nay  verily.  "Who  are  kept  by  the  power  of  God  through 
faith."  "I  have  prayed  that  thy  faith  fail  not."  That 
is  what  we  call  the  perseverance  of  the  saints ;  persever- 
ance explains  our  continuance  through  the  help  of  God, 
and  the  preservation  shows  how  God  enables  us  to  per- 
severe. 

Fifth  Item :  The  next  item  is  the  consummation  of 
salvation.  Fifth  verse:  "A  salvation  ready  to  be  re- 
vealed at  the  last  time."  We  say  that  a  man  reaches  sal- 
vation when  he  is  justified,  that  he  is  saved.  Well,  he  is 
saved  from  the  law,  but  the  work  of  salvation  has  not 
been  completed  in  him,  and  it  will  not  be  completed  in 
him  until  Christ  comes  again,  and  hence  it  is  here  re- 
ferred to  as  a  salvation  ready  to  be  revealed ;  when  Christ 
comes  the  salvation  is  consummated.  It  is  consummated 
because  then  takes  place  the  salvation  of  the  body.  That 
is  part  of  ourselves.  Our  bodies  are  not  saved  now,  but 
when  our  bodies  are  raised  from  the  dead  and  glorified, 
salvation  will  be  completed.    The  salvation  of  our  souls  is 


2M  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

not  complete  now  because  we  are  not  sanctified.  I  never 
saw  anybody  that  was. 

Sixth  Item :  The  next  item  of  the  analysis :  "Joy  i" 
grief,"  in  the  6th  verse.  "Wherein  ye  greatly  rejoice, 
though  now  for  a  little  while,  if  need  be,  ye  have  been 
put  to  grief  in  manifold  trials."  That  is  what  we  call  a 
paradox.  Dr.  Crawford  in  that  inimitable  book  of  his 
called  "Christian  Paradoxes,"  makes  this  one  of  them. 
"As  sorrowing,  yet  rejoicing,"  rejoicing  in  grief.  In  the 
sufferings  which  come  upon  Christians  they  are  put  to 
grief,  tears  flow  from  their  eyes  many  times.  They  feel 
their  heart  strings  snap  ;  they  are  bowed  down  with  heavy 
sufferings,  and  yet  in  all  of  it  there  is  joy.  Paul  praised 
God  while  his  back  was  bloody  with  the  stripes  received 
from  the  lictors  of  the  Romans.    He  rejoiced  in  sorrow. 

Take  this  for  example.  Suppose  one  who  is  a  father 
should  lose  a  little  child.  He  can  stand  at  the  grave  of 
that  little  child  and  weep  and  rejoice.  He  rejoices  in 
the  hope  of  meeting  him  again ;  in  the  assurance  of  God 
that  he  will  see  him  again,  and  all  around  our  Christian 
life  there  are  those  two,  joy  and  sorrow.  Joy  in  grief. 
There  is  no  way  to  get  around  it.  It  isn't  best  for  us 
that  we  should  get  around  it  in  this  world.  We  must 
have  tribulation. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  can  you  say  as  to  the  tradition  concerning  Peter? 

2.  Who  wrote  this  letter,  and  what  the  arguments? 

3.  What  objection  by  radical  critics? 

4.  To  whom  was  it  written? 

5.  What  the  bearing  on  the  "Where  written?" 

6.  Through  whom  written? 

7.  Where  written,  and  why  do  you  think  so? 

8.  What  the  theme  of   this   letter? 

9.  What  the  character  of  the  letter? 

10.  When  written? 

11.  What  the  occasion? 


INTRODUCTION  TO  I  PETER  225 

12.  What  the  relations  to  previous  New  Testament  books? 

13.  On   Peter's  doctrine  of   election  answer : 

(a)  What   is   it? 

(b)  Who  elects? 

(c)  According  to  what? 

(d)  What  does  he  mean  by  foreknowledge? 

(e)  In   what? 

(f)  What  meaning  of  "in  sanctification  of  the  Spirit?" 

(g)  Unto  what? 

(h)  What  the  evidences  of  election  to  the  individual? 

( i )  Restate  the   work  of   each   of   the  persons   of  the 

Trinity  represented  by  the  doctrine  of  election. 

14.  What  the  effect  of  Christ's  resurrection  on  the  hope  of 
His  disciples,  and  the  importance  of  the  doctrine  involved? 

15.  The    Christian's    inheritance : 

(a)  What  the  character  of  it? 

(b)  Where? 

(c)  For  whom? 

(d)  When   received? 

(e)  What  the  assurance  that  we  shall  realize  this  in- 

heritance? 

16.  What  the  meaning  of  salvation  in  verse  5? 

17.  Explain    the    paradox,    "joy    in   grief."      Illustrate. 


XIX 

UNDESERVED  CHRISTIAN  SUFFERING 

Exposition:   I  Pet.  i :  7-25 

WE  HAVE  considered  in  two  chapters  the  New 
Testament  Hfe  of  Peter,  all  the  passages  re- 
ferring to  Peter  in  their  chronological  order, 
and  we  have  had  a  chapter  on  the  special  introduction  to 
the  First  Letter  of  Peter,  and  in  addition  have  pro- 
ceeded in  the  expository  analysis  of  that  letter  down  to 
the  sixth  verse. 

That  brings  us  to  the  seventh  item  of  the  expository 
analysis.    The  preceding  items  were  these : 

1.  Peter's  doctrine  of  election. 

2.  The  effect  of  Christ's  resurrection  on  the  hope  of 
the  disciples. 

3.  The  great  inheritance  to  which  that  hope  points. 

4.  The  preservation  of  the  heirs  of  that  inheritance. 

5.  The  consummation  of  the  salvation. 

6.  Joy  in  grief — that  paradox. 

The  seventh  item  of  the  expository  analysis,  the  one 
which  we  are  to  discuss  in  this  chapter,  is  suggested  by 
the  following  words:  "Ye  have  been  put  to  grief  in 
manifold  trials  that  the  proof  of  your  faith  being  more 
precious  than  gold  that  perisheth,  though  it  is  proved  by 
fire,  may  be  found  unto  praise  and  glory  and  honor  at 
the  revelation  of  Jesus  Christ."  That  declaration  intro- 
duces the  value  and  purpose  of  the  Christian's  unde- 
served suffering  in  this  life.  Peter  makes  some  references 
to  the  Christian's  suffering  where  it  is  deserved  through 
his  faults.    But  the  problem  is  that  of  undeserved  Chris- 

226 


UNDESERVED  CHRISTIAN  SUFFERING  227 

tian  suffering  in  this  life.  This  is  the  problem  of  the 
book  of  Job,  also  the  problem  of  Psalm  73.  It  is 
the  old  story  of  the  burning  bush  and  of  the  fiery  fur- 
nace of  Nebuchadnezzar.  But  I  Peter  throws  more  light 
on  it  than  all  the  books  of  the  Old  Testament  put  to- 
gether. 

The  following  passages  in  this  letter  continue  to  bring 
up  the  subject :  Peter  2  :  20,  3  :  14  and  17 ;  4 :  i ;  4 :  12-18 ; 
and  the  5th  chapter  and  loth  verse.  So  that  in  every 
chapter  of  this  letter  there  is  a  discussion  of  the  problem 
of  undeserved  suffering.  If  we  were  to  gather  all  the 
statements  in  the  letter  bearing  upon  that  subject,  we 
would  reach  the  following  results : 

I.  One  object  of  undeserved  Christian  suffering  is  to 
try  our  faith,  and  his  illustration  is  "like  gold  that  is 
tried  in  the  fire."  By  fusing  gold  in  the  crucible  the  pure 
metal  is  separated  from  the  alloy;  the  gold  is  not  de- 
stroyed by  being  fused,  but  it  is  cleansed  and  purified. 
We  find  the  same  thought  in  the  book  of  Malachi,  where 
he  says,  "Jesus  will  sit  as  a  refiner  of  silver."  The  re- 
finer puts  the  silver  in  the  crucible  and  keeps  increasing 
the  heat  and  watching  it,  and  as  soon  as  it  is  thoroughly 
melted,  then  there  is  a  separation  of  the  dross  from  the 
silver.  Let  us  fix  the  thought  in  our  mind  that  God's  ob- 
ject, or  one  of  His  objects,  in  permitting  or  sending  un- 
deserved trouble,  is  to  refine  us.  It  is  the  fiery  trial  of 
our  faith.  Peter  did  not  understand  that  when  he  was 
subjected  to  the  sifting  trial  at  the  request  of  the  devil: 
"Simon,  Satan  hath  obtained  you  apostles  by  asking  that 
he  may  sift  you  as  wheat."  He  could  not  have  gotten  the 
permission  for  another  purpose,  but  he  did  get  it  for  that 
purpose,  for  wheat  ought  to  be  sifted ;  it  does  not  hurt  it 
even  if  the  devil  shakes  the  sieve.  We  thereby  get  rid  of 
the  chaff. 


228  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

The  second  thought  is  that  these  trials,  no  matter  who 
the  immediate  agent,  are  by  the  will  of  God.  The  will 
of  the  devil  was  indeed  in  that  trying  of  Peter,  but  so 
was  the  will  of  God.  In  other  words,  the  devil's  will  in 
the  matter  was  permissive  and  limited.  We  may  be 
slandered  and  the  man  or  demon  who  slanders  us  may 
be  prompted  by  envy,  hatred  or  malice,  but  if  we  are 
submissive  to  the  dominant  and  benevolent  divine  will, 
great  good  accrues. 

Third :  "Beloved  brethren,  think  it  not  strange  con- 
cerning this  fiery  trial  that  has  come  upon  you."  That 
is  the  first  impression  of  the  average  Christian.  He  is 
amazed  at  what  has  come  upon  him.  A  strange,  a  very 
strange  providence! 

There  are  several  reasons  why  he  should  not  think 
it  strange.  One  reason  is  that  such  trials  are  common  to 
all  of  God's  people;  always  have  been  and  always  will 
be.  Paul  says,  "No  temptation  hath  come  to  you  but  such 
as  is  common  to  man."  In  other  words,  "It  isn't  worth 
while  to  try  to  make  a  martyr  out  of  yourself  by  suppos- 
ing that  you  are  a  special  case."  Another  reason  why 
we  should  not  think  it  strange  is  that  that  is  the  only 
way  to  accomplish  certain  good  results — results  that  are 
intensely  beneficial.  A  good  sister  in  the  church  in  Waco 
when  I  was  pastor,  wanted  me  to  join  with  her  in  prayer 
that  she  might  have  patience,  and  I  asked  her  how  she 
wanted  that  patience  to  come,  handed  down  in  a  sealed 
package  from  heaven,  or  by  God's  method?  She  said 
of  course  God's  method.  "Then  my  dear  sister,"  I  said 
to  her,  "there  is  only  one  mill  that  I  know  of  that  grinds 
the  grist  of  patience,  and  that  is  tribulation."  "Tribula- 
tion worketh  patience,"  and  desiring  patience  we  must 
not  complain  of  the  antecedent  and  necessary  tribula- 
tion. 


UNDESERVED  CHRISTIAN  SUFFERING  229 

If  we  want  permanent  relief  from  an  incorrigible  tooth, 
we  must  endure  the  ordeal  of  extraction. 

The  fourth  thought  is,  that  our  patient  endurance  of 
affliction  is  a  powerful  means  of  convicting  sinners  of 
sin.  A  Christian  who  meekly  endures,  without  murmur- 
ing, what  God  puts  on  him,  and  goes  right  on  saying  in 
his  heart  and  in  his  life  that  the  Judge  of  all  the  earth 
doeth  right,  that  man  convicts  sinners.  They  know  they 
can't  do  that  and  that  he  has  something  they  have  not. 
And  not  only  is  it  a  way  of  convicting  sinners,  but  it  is 
an  evidence,  a  token  of  our  salvation,  that  we  belong  to 
the  elect,  that  we  belong  to  God's  people. 

The  fifth  thought  is,  that  this  endurance  of  undeserved 
affliction  is  acceptable  with  God.  No  matter  what  it 
costs  us  to  bear  a  thing  patiently,  we  have  this  consola- 
tion :    "It  hurts  me,  but  it  is  acceptable  with  God." 

Sixth.  The  next  thought  he  sets  forth  is,  that  we  are 
called  unto  these  things.  Every  man  that  is  a  Christian 
in  some  way  received  a  call.  Just  as  Jesus  met  Paul  in 
the  middle  of  the  road,  and  said,  "Saul !  Saul !"  So  in 
a  way  through  the  gospel  we  were  called.  There  was  a 
time  when  we  felt  that  call.  Now  that  very  first  intima- 
tion to  us  that  God's  Holy  Spirit  sent  us,  called  us  unto 
suffering.  When  Jesus  called  Saul  he  spoke  to  Ananias 
and  said,  "I  will  show  him  how  great  things  he  must 
suffer  for  my  sake." 

Seventh.  The  next  thought  that  Peter  presents  with 
very  great  force  is  the  example  of  Christ.  The  servant 
should  not  seek  to  be  better  than  his  master ;  to  be  exempt 
from  things  that  his  master  has  to  bear;  it  was  in  the 
mind  of  Christ  to  be  a  sufferer.  It  was  a  joy  to  Him,  as 
He  looked  to  the  recompense  of  the  reward,  and  so  Peter 
says  that  Christ  suffered  that  He  might  put  before  us  an 
example.  True,  there  are  some  things  in  which  the  suffer- 


230  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

ings  of  Christ  are  not  an  example  to  us.  We  can't  follow 
Christ  as  a  vicarious  expiation  for  sin.  But  we  can  fol- 
low Christ  in  most  of  the  sufferings  that  came  upon  Him 
when  He  was  in  the  flesh.  "Can  you  be  baptized  with 
the  baptism  that  I  am  to  be  baptized  with?"  And  He 
answers  the  question :  "Ye  shall  indeed  be  baptized 
with  that  baptism.    The  waves  must  roll  over  you." 

Then  Peter  makes  this  point  that  looks  like  it  is  too 
simple  for  a  statement,  yet  when  we  keep  turning  it 
over  in  our  minds,  we  get  something  out  of  it.  He  says, 
"It  is  better  to  suffer  wrongfully  than  justly."  Every- 
body in  the  world  suffers ;  there  is  no  escape  from  that. 
Some  people  suffer  justly ;  they  deserve  it ;  and  some 
suffer  wrongfully.  Peter  says  of  the  two,  it  is  better  to 
suffer  wrongfully  than  to  suffer  justly.  He  then  makes 
this  capital  point  that  whenever  we  have  a  trial  as  a 
Christian,  when  something  that  we  didn't  deserve  has 
come  upon  us,  we  then  share  with  Christ ;  a  partnership 
is  established  between  us  and  the  Lord.  When  He  was 
on  His  way  to  the  cross,  and  it  was  heavy,  and  He  had 
been  subjected  to  great  maltreatment  and  was  hungry 
and  weary  and  wasted,  as  He  staggered  under  His  bur- 
den, "Simon  a  Cyrenian  they  compelled  to  bear  the 
cross"  of  Jesus.  I  don't  suppose  Simon  did  it  volun- 
tarily, but  somebody  laid  hold  of  this  passer-by  and  com- 
pelled him  to  share  that  burden  with  Christ.  And  though 
unwilling  to  suffer  voluntarily  as  a  Christian,  somebody 
will  compel  us  to  bear  the  cross  of  Christ ;  some  outsider 
will  take  a  hand  in  it,  and  so  we  might  as  well  volunteer. 
Peter  says  that  whenever  we  thus  suffer,  it  is  an  evidence 
that  the  Spirit  of  glory  and  of  God  resteth  on  us.  Fre- 
quently he  makes  this  point:  That  judgment  must  com- 
mence at  the  house  of  God.  That  is  where  it  has  to  com- 
mence and  there  is  a  judgment  in  this  \yorld  and  a  judg- 


UNDESERVED  CHRISTIAN  SUFFERING  231 

ment  in  the  world  to  come,  and  if  the  righteous  scarcely 
be  saved,  where  shall  the  sinner  and  the  ungodly  appear? 
We  must  take  our  choice:  The  judgment  now  or  here- 
after. Where  will  we  have  ours?  We  are  wise  to  let 
the  hand  of  God  rest  on  us  as  heavy  as  it  may  in  this 
life ;  that  makes  it  easier  in  the  time  to  come.  They  are 
exceedingly  foolish  who  dodge  suffering  in  this  life; 
who  shut  their  eyes  to  the  fact  that  somewhere,  some 
time,  every  man  must  render  an  account  of  himself  to 
God  and  must  be  a  burden-bearer.  Let  us  take  it  as 
heavy  as  we  can  stand  it  in  this  life,  and  it  will  be  all 
the  better  in  the  next. 

Take  the  case  of  David  to  illustrate  it:  In  that  case  it 
was  deserved.  God  says  to  him,  "I  have  put  away  thy 
sin,"  that  is,  so  far  as  the  future  was  concerned.  "When 
you  get  to  heaven  there  won't  be  the  weight  of  a  pin 
against  you  up  there ;  but  you  sinned  down  here  on  earth 
and  you  must  be  chastened."  But  that  is  different  from 
the  problem  we  are  considering  here.  He  says,  "If  any 
man  suffer,  let  him  not  suffer  as  a  wrong  doer,  for  if 
when  you  are  buffeted  for  your  faults,  what  glory  is  it 
if  you  take  it  patiently?  But  if  ye  suffer  as  a  Christian, 
the  Spirit  of  glory  and  of  God  resteth  on  you."  He 
winds  up  his  letter  with  a  climax  on  that  problem.  It  is 
a  precious  text  to  me,  and  it  was  to  Spurgeon:  "The 
God  of  all  grace" — grace  in  the  day  time  and  at  night; 
in  sickness  and  in  health;  in  good  and  evil  report;  in 
this  world  and  in  the  world  to  come.  "The  God  of  all 
grace,  after  that  ye  have  suffered  awhile,  will  perfect 
you  himself;  himself  strengthen  you;  himself  establish 
you ;  himself  perfect  you." 

The  eighth  item  of  the  expository  analysis  is  based  on 
this  scripture:  "Whom  having  not  seen,  ye  love;  on 
whom,  though  now  ye  see  Him  not,  yet  believing,  ye  re- 


232  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

joice  greatly  with  joy  unspeakable  and  full  of  glory;  re- 
ceiving the  end  of  your  faith,  even  the  salvation  of  your 
souls."    What  a  theme  for  preaching !    I  have  it  this  way 
in  my  analysis :   Loving,  believing,  rejoicing  and  receiv- 
ing without  seeing.    In  the  first  chapter  on  the  life  of 
Peter  we  were  examining  those  experiences  or  observa- 
tions of  his  own  life  that  made  the  most  impression  on 
his  own  mind,  and  one  of  the  things  so  noted  was  Peter's 
presence  when  Thomas  said,  "Except  I  put  my  fingers 
in  the  print  of  the  nails  in  His  hands,  and  thrust  my  hand 
in  His  side,  I  will  not  believe."    Peter  was  also  present 
when  Jesus  came  into  the  assembly  and  said,  "Thomas, 
behold  my  hands,  reach  hither  your  fingers,  thrust  your 
hand  in  my  side."    And  Thomas  believed,  but  Jesus  said, 
"Blessed  are  they  who  not  seeing,  yet  believe."     That 
saying  made  a  great  impression  on  Peter,  believing  with- 
out seeing.    Andrew  Fuller  in  his  works,  has  a  sermon 
on  what  faith  is  contrasted  with.     He  says  faith  is  not 
contrasted  with  frames  and  feelings.     H  we  feel  good 
today  and  felt  bad  yesterday,  that  is  what  he  means  by 
frames  and  feelings,  but  faith  is  contrasted  with  sight. 
"We  walk  by  faith,  not  by  sight."     Faith  takes  hold  of 
the   invisible.     Moses  endured   as   seeing   Him  who  is 
invisible.     In  other  words,  faith  is  the  eye  to  the  soul. 
Our  carnal  eye  cannot  see  heaven,  invisible  to  natural 
sight.    To  give  an  illustration:    If  we  step  out  at  night 
and  throw  our  eyes  up  toward  heaven,  we  see  a  splash 
across  the  sky  called  the  milky  way.     The  natural  eye 
cannot  discern  between  the  parts  of  the  whiteness,  but 
when  we  look  at  it  through  the  big  telescope  in  the  ob- 
servatory, that  splash  of  whiteness  dififerentiates ;  it  sep- 
arates into  millions  of  distinct  worlds.     What  the  tele- 
scope is  to  the  natural  eye,  so  faith  is  to  the  soul.     It 
brings  distant  things  near  and  outlines  them  so  we  can 


UNDESERVED  CHRISTIAN  SUFFERING  233 

take  hold  of  them.  Peter  says  not  only  are  we  called  on 
to  believe  without  seeing,  but  we  are  to  love  without  see- 
ing, and  we  are  to  rejoice  with  joy  unspeakable  without 
seeing,  and  we  are  to  receive  the  salvation  of  our  souls 
without  seeing.  It  is  all  visible  by  faith.  Faith  gives 
substance  to  things  hoped  for,  and  is  the  evidence  of 
the  things  not  seen. 

The  ninth  item  of  the  analysis  is  the  unity  and  glory 
of  the  plan  of  salvation  based  on  this  scripture  (i:io- 
ii)  :  "Concerning  which  salvation  the  prophets  sought 
and  searched  diligently,  who  prophesied  of  the  grace  that 
should  come  unto  you :  searching  what  time  or  what 
manner  of  time  the  Spirit  of  Christ  which  was  in  them 
did  point  unto,  when  it  testified  beforehand  the  sufferings 
of  Christ  and  the  glories  that  should  follow.  To  whom 
it  was  revealed  that  not  unto  themselves,  but  unto  you, 
did  they  minister  these  things,  which  now  have  been  an- 
nounced unto  you  through  them  that  preached  the  gospel 
unto  you  by  the  Holy  Spirit  sent  forth  from  heaven, 
which  things  angels  desire  to  look  into."  Analyzing  that 
compound  sentence  we  get  the  following  thoughts : 

1.  The  unity  of  the  two  testimonies;  they  strike  hands. 
What  these  Old  Testament  prophets  foretold,  our  New 
Testament  apostles  proclaimed  as  facts  and  proclaimed 
them  with  the  Holy  Spirit  sent  down  from  heaven.  The 
two  parts  fit  into  each  other;  one  is  the  development  of 
the  other,  so  that  there  is  a  unity  in  the  plan  of  revelation. 

2.  Wherever  a  revelation  comes  from  God  in  the  form 
of  a  prophecy,  it  becomes  a  subject  of  inquiry  to  the  re- 
ceiver of  it.  Imagine  Isaiah,  under  the  inspiration  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  looking  upon  that  mysterious  suffering  ser- 
vant of  the  Lord  revealed  to  him:  "Who  hath  believed 
our  report?  To  whom  is  the  arm  of  the  Lord  revealed? 
His  visage  was  marred  more  than  that  of  any  of  the 


234  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

sons  of  men.  He  was  esteemed  stricken  and  afflicted  of 
God.  All  our  sins  were  put  on  Him."  Immediately  the 
question  came  up  in  his  mind :  "What  time  and  what 
manner  of  time  will  this  be?"  Those  prophets  searched 
diligently.  Searched  on  what  point?  As  to  the  time 
and  manner  of  time  that  the  things  they  foretold  would 
take  place.  But  not  only  the  prophets  tried  to  look  into 
it,  but  the  angels  tried  to  look  into  it.  It  attracted  the 
attention  of  the  angels:  "Which  things  the  angels  desire 
to  look  into." 

3.  When  they  so  searched,  it  was  revealed  unto  them 
that  these  things  which  they  were  foretelling  were  not  for 
themselves,  but  for  us,  to  come  long  after  they  had  passed 
away.  God  let  them  see  that  these  wonderful  things 
about  Christ's  suffering  and  those  marvelous  glories  that 
would  follow  His  sufferings,  would  not  come  in  their 
time.  Observe  the  analogy  of  the  New  Testament 
prophecy  and  notice  how  now,  as  well  as  then,  men  want 
to  get  at  the  time  and  manner  of  time  of  the  second 
advent.  When  Christ  predicted  the  destruction  of  the 
temple  and  the  end  of  the  world,  Peter,  with  others, 
asked,  "Lord,  when  shall  these  things  be?"  Notice  that 
he  had  that  inquiring  spirit  which  the  old  prophets  had, 
the  curiosity  to  look  into  the  question  of  time  and  cir- 
cumstance, and  every  one  of  us  is  an  interrogation  point 
on  the  same  things.  A  brilliant  lady  within  the  days  of 
Queen  Anne  made  this  remark  about  Alexander  Pope, 
the  great  poet :  "Why  is  Pope  like  an  interrogation 
point?  Because  he  is  a  little  crooked  thing  that  asks 
questions."  The  witticism  was  brutally  cruel  in  its  ref- 
erence to  his  small,  malformed  body.  But  every  one  of 
us  is  an  interrogation  point  on  the  time  and  the  manner 
of  the  second  coming  of  Christ.  "Lord,  wilt  thou  at  this 
time  restore  the  kingdom  ?"    "Lord,  will  it  be  next  week." 


UNDESERVED  CHRISTIAN  SUFFERING  235 

"Lord,  can't  we  figure  it  out  as  we  do  an  eclipse,  and 
make  it  known  to  the  people,  the  day  that  all  these  things 
take  place?"  But  how  fooHsh,  for  when  the  wheels  of 
time  roll  around  they  grind  into  powder  all  their  mathe- 
matical calculations. 

Our  Lord  would  not  answer  that  question.  He  would 
answer  us  just  as  He  answered  the  prophets.  He  can 
reveal  to  us  as  He  revealed  to  them,  that  these  things 
are  certain,  that  they  are  coming  and  that  they  are  for 
somebody,  but  not  for  us.  Peter  was  one  of  them.  He 
knew  the  second  advent  was  not  for  him,  because  Christ 
had  told  him  that  he  would  die  by  crucifixion;  so  he 
knew  it  would  not  come  in  his  time.  So  the  Thessalo- 
nians  went  wild  until  corrected  by  Paul.  It  is  one  of 
the  most  curious  things  in  psychology — a  man's  curiosity 
to  know  the  very  things  of  the  least  concern  to  him. 
Wouldn't  one  rather  be  saved  than  to  know  the  time  of 
salvation  ?  Wouldn't  we  rather  be  sure  of  our  salvation 
than  of  the  time  of  it?  "When  Thou,  my  righteous 
Judge,  shall  come  to  take  Thy  ransomed  people  home. 
O !  how  can  I  bear  the  piercing  thought,  what  if  my  name 
should  be  left  out?"  Had  we  not  rather  be  sure  of  the 
fact  that  we  will  not  be  left  out  than  to  be  sure  of  the 
day? 

Let  me  assure  you  solemnly  that  the  great  power  of 
the  second  advent,  just  like  the  first,  is  not  in  the  day  of 
its  coming,  but  it  is  in  the  fact  of  its  coming  and  what 
follows. 

I  once  took  up  this  line  of  thought :  "Which  things  the 
angels  desire  to  look  into,"  and  I  followed  it  all  through 
the  Bible.  When  we  get  on  an  angel's  trail,  we  are  on 
a  good  trail.  I  followed  it  up  all  through  the  Bible  to 
see,  just  as  far  as  revelation  would  show,  about  the 
angels.     I  found  them  intensely  interested  in  the  affairs 


236  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

of  this  world  from  away  back  yonder  when  God  made 
the  world,  and  the  sons  of  God  shouted  for  joy.  I  found 
that  from  the  time  that  He  made  it  that  angels  above,  and 
angels  below,  angels  of  love,  and  angels  of  woe,  concen- 
trated their  attention  on  the  problems  of  man's  earthly 
and  eternal  life,  and  therefore,  in  those  symbolical  rep- 
resentations in  Solomon's  Temple,  the  cherubim  were 
carved  as  bending  over  the  mercy  seat  and  looking  down 
there  where  the  blood  falls,  intently  looking  down  (that 
is  what  the  word  means).  They  were  investigating  the 
question  of  salvation  by  the  shedding  of  blood.  Then 
their  figures  were  represented  on  the  veil,  and  when  we 
come  to  the  New  Testament  we  find  that  they  take  stock 
in  everything  from  the  Announcement  on.  They  are  not 
only  at  the  cradle,  but  at  the  tomb,  and  a  shining  angel 
announced  the  resurrection.  Paul  says  that  whenever 
God's  people  come  together  let  the  women  have  covering 
on  their  heads  because  of  the  angels ;  they  are  there. 
There  are  angels  hovering  round.  They  are  students. 
They  have  not  omniscience — they  have  to  learn  by  study- 
ing, by  looking,  therefore,  Paul  says  that  the  church  is 
the  instructor  of  angels.  "It  shall  be  made  known  unto 
the  angels  the  manifold  wisdom  of  God  by  the  church." 
Now,  here  we  have  this  plan  of  salvation  with  the  angels 
studying  about  it  and  the  prophets  studying  about  it. 

This  brings  us  to  the  first  exhortation  in  the  book: 
"Wherefore,"  that  is,  the  "wherefore"  looks  back  at 
every  preceding  thing,  "girding  up  the  loins  of  your 
mind,  be  sober  and  set  your  hope  perfectly  on  the  grace 
that  is  to  be  brought  unto  you  at  the  revelation  of  Jesus 
Christ."  In  other  words,  "That  is  the  thing  to  think 
about.  Don't  you  set  your  mind  on  the  time  when,  but 
on  the  grace  that  is  to  be  brought  at  the  revelation  of 
Jesus  Christ."     "As  children  of  obedience,  not  fashion- 


UNDESERVED  CHRISTIAN  SUFFERING  237 

ing  yourselves  according  to  your  former  lusts  in  the  time 
of  your  ignorance,  but  like  as  He  who  called  you  is  holy, 
be  ye  yourselves  also  holy  in  all  manner  of  living,  because 
it  is  written,  'Ye  shall  be  holy ;  for  I  am  holy.' " 

That  is  his  first  exhortation.  Peter  does  not  let  the 
taste  get  out  of  our  mouth  when  giving  a  doctrine  until 
he  has  a  practical  use  for  it.  Doctrine  is  not  something 
to  be  debated  about,  but  assimilated  in  the  life.  A  man 
may  be  so  sound  in  doctrine  that  he  is  nothing  but  sound. 
Doctrine  must  be  applied.  We  must  so  apply  every  reve- 
lation of  God ;  every  truth  of  God.  Peter  was  a  practical 
man. 

The  next  point  in  my  analysis  I  call,  "What  prayer 
entails."  "And  if  ye  call  on  Him  as  a  Father  who,  with- 
out respect  of  persons,  judgeth  according  to  each  man's 
work,  pass  the  time  of  your  sojourning  in  fear."  If  we 
pray,  what  follows?  Let  us  pass  the  time  of  our  so- 
journing here  in  fear.  In  other  words,  Christian  prayer 
is  a  lot  of  foolishness  if  it  is  like  school  children  slipping 
along  down  the  street,  running  up  to  the  front  door  and 
ringing  the  bell,  then  running  oil  before  anybody  comes. 
If  we  ring  the  bell,  if  we  pray,  there  is  an  obligation  en- 
tailed when  we  pray.  If  we  call  on  Him  as  Father,  we 
should  pass  the  time  of  our  sojourning  here  in  fear. 
That  covers  his  thought  so  well  we  will  go  to  the  next. 
Our  next  division  is : 

The  Cost  of  Redemption,  and  it  covers  a  great  deal  of 
space.  Let  us  read  it :  "Knowing  that  ye  are  redeemed, 
not  with  corruptible  things,  with  silver  or  gold,  from 
your  vain  manner  of  life,  handed  down  from  your 
fathers;  but  with  precious  blood,  as  of  a  lamb  without 
blemish  and  without  spot,  even  the  blood  of  Christ." 

So,  in  discussing  redemption,  the  first  thing  presented 
is  its  cost.    What  does  it  mean?    To  redeem  is  to  buy 


238  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

back.  It  is  the  buying  back  of  a  lost  soul.  What  did  it 
cost  ?  He  says,  "You  were  bought  back,  not  with  money, 
silver  or  gold,  but  with  the  precious  blood  of  Christ" ; 
that  is  the  price  He  paid  for  it.  He  then  says,  following 
his  thought  on  redemption.  "Who  was  foreknown  indeed 
before  the  foundation  of  the  world,  but  was  manifested 
at  the  end  of  the  times  for  your  sake."  This  was  the 
Redeemer  who,  on  the  cross,  paid  the  price  of  our  re- 
demption. But  that  was  not  the  beginning  of  it.  He  was 
foreknown  from  the  foundation  of  the  world.  What 
took  place  on  Calvary  was  the  result  of  what  took  place 
before  the  world  was  made.  It  was  not  accidental,  it 
was  not  an  emergency  prompted  by  the  startled  and  sur- 
prised mind  of  God,  seeing  the  devil  had  gotten  away 
with  the  human  race.  At  the  beginning,  and  before  God 
ever  said,  "Let  the  world  be,"  He  knew  all  about  it,  and 
Christ,  the  Redeemer,  was  then  in  covenant  with  the 
Father.  While  He  was  foreknown  before  the  foundation 
of  the  world,  He  was  manifested  in  those  last  times,  the 
fullness  of  time.  Think  of  it,  four  thousand  years! 
That  will  give  us  some  conception  of  God.  A  thousand 
years  are  with  God  as  one  day,  or  like  a  watch  in  the 
night.  Four  thousand  years  that  purpose  of  the  Re- 
deemer seemed  to  be  slumbering.  Every  now  and  then 
a  star  would  flash  out  a  prophetic  light,  coming  yet 
nearer  and  nearer  to  the  truth :  through  Abraham,  Isaac, 
Jacob,  Judah,  Joseph,  etc.,  He  must  come;  He  must  be 
born  in  Bethlehem  of  Judea.  Getting  nearer  and  nearer, 
at  last  He  was  manifested.  God  was  manifested.  The 
Redeemer  came.    And  so  will  be  the  next  advent. 

Continuing  the  thought  of  redemption,  he  says,  "Who 
through  Him  are  believers  in  God."  We  should  stop  to 
think  where  our  faith  came  from,  and  how  utterly  un- 
knowable God  is  without  Christ;  now  we  can  get  hold 


UNDESERVED  CHRISTIAN  SUFFERING  239 

of  Him.  My  own  heart  leaped  for  joy  at  the  revelation 
of  God  the  Father,  when  my  soul  by  faith  took  hold  on 
Jesus  Christ  the  Son.  I  never  before  had  understood 
God.  Jesus  revealed  God  to  me.  It  was  through  Him 
that  I  believed  in  God.  I  saw  God  now  to  be  loving  and 
near,  tender  and  compassionate. 

The  Redemption  Proof.  The  next  thought  that  Peter 
presents  is,  "God  the  F'ather  who  raised  Him  from  the 
dead  and  gave  Him  glory."  How  calm  was  He  at  the 
last,  when  the  three  hours  of  darkness  passed!  Our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  only  undisturbed  soul  in  the  uni- 
verse, lifts  up  His  eyes  and  prays,  "Father,  I  have  done 
what  you  told  me  to  do ;  I  have  finished  the  work  that 
you  told  me  to  do.  Now,  Father,  glorify  me  with  the 
glory  which  I  had  with  you  before  the  world  was."  And 
He  went  down  to  death  in  unshaken  faith  that  God 
would  raise  Him  and  take  Him  back  to  glory. 

The  next  thought  on  redemption  is  its  method  of  ap- 
plication, as  presented  in  this  verse:  "Seeing  ye  have 
purified  your  souls  in  your  obedience  to  the  truth  unto 
unfeigned  love  of  the  brethren,  having  been  begotten 
again,  not  of  corruptible  seed,  but  of  incorruptible, 
through  the  word  of  God,  which  liveth  and  abideth." 
Now  the  application  of  the  redemption — "having  been 
begotten  again" — we  were  begotten  once  of  our  earthly 
fathers  and  their  seed,  corruptible  seed.  That  birth  in- 
troduces us  to  the  depravity  of  our  sires.  But  when  we 
get  in  touch  with  redemption  we  have  a  new  birth,  a 
birth  from  above  and  of  a  different  seed,  a  different  sire ; 
the  next  time  our  sire  is  God.  In  the  other  case  it  was 
man,  and  since  God  is  our  sire  in  this  regeneration  we 
are  born,  not  of  corruptible  seed,  but  of  incorruptible 
seed,  and  the  instrumentality  employed  is  the  word  of 
God.    "Of  His  own  will  He  brought  us  forth  with  the 


240  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

word  of  truth,"  says  James.  Peter  himself  adds :  "having 
been  begotten,  not  of  corruptible  seed,  but  of  incorrupti- 
ble, through  the  word  of  God,  which  liveth  and  abideth." 
"For  all  flesh  withereth,  and  the  flower  falleth,  but  the 
word  of  the  Lord  abideth  forever."  Some  old-time 
Baptists  contended  that  the  word  was  not  the  seed,  but 
the  instrument  of  seed-planting,  that  the  seminal  principle 
of  life  was  communicated  through  the  word. 

QUESTIONS 

r.  What  the  problem  of  the  book  of  Job,  of  the  73rd  Psalm, 

and  of  this  book? 

2.  What  two  symbolic  representations  of  this  problem  in  the 
Old  Testament? 

3.  How  does  the   discussion  in  this  book  compare  with  the 
Old  Testament  light  on  the  subject? 

4.  On  the  undeserved  suffering  of  the  righteous  answer: 

(a^  What  one  of  the  objects? 

(b)  By  what  are  they  permitted? 

(c)  What  usually  the  first   impression  made  by  them, 

and    why    should    the     Christian    not     think    it 
strange? 

(d)  What  the  effect  of  the  patient  endurance  of  them 

on   the    world? 

(e)  What  the  consolation  of  undeserved  affliction? 

(f)  How  is  this  subject  related  to  the  purpose  of  God? 

(g)  What  encouragement  by  way  of  example? 

(h)  What  distinction  does   Peter  make  on  the  subject 
of  human  suffering? 

5.  What  great  text  for  preaching?    Give  the  author's  analysis. 

6.  What  incident  in  Peter's  life  brought  forth  this  statement 
from  him? 

7.  With  what  is  faith  contrasted,  and  what  sermon  cited? 

8.  Give  an  analysis  of  1:10-11. 

9.  What  is  a  more  important  question  than  the  question  of 
time? 

10.  What  interest   displayed  in  man's  salvation? 

11.  What  the   first   exhortation  in  the  book? 

12.  What  does  prayer  entail? 

13.  What  did  our   redemption  cost? 

14.  What  the  meaning  of  "foreknown,"  verse  20? 

15.  How  are  we  through   Christ  believers  in  God? 

16.  What  is  the  redemption  proof  ? 

17.  What  the  method  of  the  application  of  redemption? 


T 


XX 

WHAT  TO  PUT  AWAY 

Exposition:  I  Pet.  2 :  i — 4 : 6 

HIS  section  commences  at  I  Peter  2:1:  What  to 
put  away,  and  on  what  to  be  nourished.  The 
Christian  should  put  away  wickedness,  guile, 
hypocrisies,  and  evil  speaking.  The  nourishment  is  "the 
sincere  milk  of  the  word,  which  is  without  guile,  that  ye 
may  grow  thereby."  No  man  can  grow  in  the  Christian 
life  without  feeding  upon  Christian  food,  and  therefore 
men  who  preach  the  word  are  said  to  break  the  bread  of 
life  to  the  people.  This  brings  us  to  a  new  and  emphatic 
item  of  the  analysis : 

The  Spiritual  Temple,  chapter  2:4-10,  as  follows: 
"Unto  whom  coming,  a  living  stone,  rejected  indeed  of 
men,  but  with  God  elect,  precious,  ye  also,  as  living  stones, 
are  built  up  a  spiritual  house,  to  be  a  holy  priesthood,  to 
offer  up  spiritual  sacrifices,  acceptable  to  God  through 
Jesus  Christ.    Because  it  is  contained  in  scripture, 

Behold,  I  lay  in  Zion  a  chief  corner  stone,  elect,  precious: 

And  he  that  beheveth  in  Him  shall  not  be  put  to  shame. 

For  you  therefore  that  believe  is  the  preciousness :   but  for  such 

as  disbelieve, 
The  stone  which  the  builders  rejected. 
The  same  was  made  the  head  of  the  corner;  and  a  stone  of 

stumbling,  and  a  rock  of  offence; 
For   they   stumble   at   the   word,   being   disobedient:    whereunto 

also  they  were  appointed. 

But  ye  are  an  elect  race,  a  royal  priesthood,  a  holy 
nation,  a  people  for  God's  own  possession,  that  ye  may 
show  forth  the  excellencies  of  Him  who  called  you  out  of 
darkness  into  His  own  marvelous  light :  who  in  time  past 


242  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

were  no  people,  but  now  are  the  people  of  God :  who  had 
not  obtained  mercy,  but  now  have  obtained  mercy." 

Consider  first  the  foundation  of  the  spiritual  house. 
The  characteristics  of  this  foundation  are  first,  that  it  is 
a  living  stone,  not  a  dead  one.  The  foundation  of  Solo- 
mon's Temple  was  inert  matter.  The  foundation  stone 
of  the  spiritual  house  of  which  Peter  speaks  was  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  himself ;  not  dead,  but  living.  This 
foundation  is  not  only  alive,  but  the  stone  which  consti- 
tutes it  was  elected.  That  means  it  was  chosen.  God 
selected  that  foundation.  As  it  is  God's  house,  it  is  for 
Him  to  say  what  substructure  shall  uphold  the  super- 
structure. For  this  purpose  He  elects  His  only  begotten 
Son.  Not  only  elect,  but  it  is  precious.  The  word  pre- 
cious there  has  the  sense  of  costly.  We  say  a  precious 
stone  in  contra-distinction  from  a  stone  of  no  particular 
value.  Precious  Christ.  From  that  word  we  get  our 
word,  "appreciate."  To  appreciate  anything  is  to  put  it 
at  its  value.  To  depreciate  it  is  to  put  it  below  its  price. 
So  it  is  not  only  an  elect  stone,  but  a  costly  one. 

The  next  thing  in  this  spiritual  building  is  that  all  of 
the  material  that  goes  into  this  spiritual  house  must  be 
living  material.  We  also  are  living  stones.  No  man  can 
be  put  into  the  temple  of  God  who  is  not  made  alive  by 
the  Spirit  of  God.  The  apostle  Paul  in  I  Cor.  3,  referring 
to  the  foundation,  says,  "There  can  be  but  one  founda- 
tion." The  building  is  God's  building,  and  that  he,  a 
preacher,  is  a  co-laborer  with  God  in  putting  up  that 
building.  Now  he  says  that  if  in  putting  up  that  temple, 
this  human  laborer  shall  put  in  material  that  will  not 
stand  the  first  test,  all  that  material  is  lost,  and  the  man 
who  puts  it  in  suffers  loss  in  the  day  that  tries  his  work 
by  fire.  He  refers  then  to  the  building  material  used. 
Some  people  use  hay,  wood,  and  stubble  for  thatching  a 


WHAT  TO  PUT  AWAY  243 

house;  they  put  that  on  the  roof,  and  some  build  the 
walls  of  wood.  Combustible  material  will  perish  in  the 
fire.  There  is  a  passage  in  Jeremiah  which  refers  to  the 
same  thing,  that  in  putting  up  the  spiritual  temple  we 
should  not  daub  with  untempered  mortar.  Mortar  must 
be  such  that  when  it  is  dry  it  will  hold  together.  Now 
the  thought  is  the  same  here,  that  this  spiritual  house  of 
which  Christ  is  the  foundation  (and  He  is  the  only  foun- 
dation) must  be  made  of  spiritual,  living  material.  That 
distinguished  Christ's  house  from  Solomon's  house.  This 
passage  interprets  Math.  i6 :  i8.  It  shows  that  Peter 
never  supposed  himself  to  be  the  rock  on  which  the  church 
is  built. 

The  next  thing  in  connection  with  the  spiritual  house  is 
that  its  members  (here  he  changes  the  figure,  no  longer 
speaking  of  them  as  the  component  parts  of  the  wall, 
but  speaking  of  them  as  servants  in  the  house)  constitute 
a  priesthood.  Every  member  of  God's  true  flock  is  a 
priest  without  regard  to  age  or  sex.  They  are  all  priests 
— a  spiritual  priesthood.  In  the  Old  Testament  the  priest- 
hood was  a  special  class.  In  the  New  Testament  God's 
people  constitute  a  kingdom  of  priests.  Every  one  of 
them  is  a  priest. 

The  next  thing  is  the  kind  of  sacrifices  that  this  priest- 
hood offers.  In  the  Old  Testament  the  sacrifices  were 
symbolical.  Here  they  are  spiritual.  Praise  is  spiritual ; 
prayer  also  is,  contribution  is,  when  given  from  the  right 
motive.  The  entire  family  of  God  are  priests,  offering 
sacrifices  unto  God. 

The  next  thought  (here  the  figure  is  changed  again)  is : 
There  was  an  old  nation  deriving  its  descent  from  Abra- 
ham. Now  Christians  belong  to  a  new  nation.  That  is 
clearly  expressed  here  in  the  passage.  It  says,  "Ye  are 
an  elect  race,"  that  is,  "you  derive  your  descent  from  the 


244  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

spiritual  seed,  Christ  being  the  head  of  the  race."  The 
old-time  Israel  was  a  national  people  made  up  of  those 
who  by  fleshly  descent  constituted  its  members.  Now 
we  are  a  spiritual  nation.  The  people  of  God  are  con- 
ceived of  as  a  nation  as  well  as  a  race. 

Now  we  come  to  the  purpose,  and  that  is  expressed  in 
these  words:  "That  ye  may  show  forth  the  excellencies 
of  Him  who  called  you  out  of  darkness  into  His  mar- 
velous light."  That  is  the  purpose.  That  is  really  the 
purpose  of  every  Christian  organization,  of  every  Chris- 
tian life,  that  the  Christian  should  show  forth  the  excel- 
lency of  God,  his  Savior. 

We  have  in  the  second  chapter,  from  the  nth  to  the 
17th  verse,  some  general  exhortations  that  do  not  par- 
ticularly need  any  exposition,  and  then  from  the  i8th 
verse  to  the  end  of  the  chapter  we  have  some  exhortations 
based  on  the  fact  that  a  large  number  of  the  Christian 
people  in  that  day  were  slaves,  servants,  and  he  starts 
out  with  that  idea.  He  speaks  to  slaves:  "Be  in  subjec- 
tion to  your  masters  with  all  fear,  not  only  to  the  good 
and  gentle,  but  also  to  the  froward,  for  this  is  acceptable, 
if  for  conscience  toward  God  a  man  endureth  griefs,  suf- 
fering wrongfully.  For  what  glory  is  it,  if,  when  ye  sin, 
and  are  buffeted  for  it,  ye  take  it  patiently?  But  if,  when 
ye  do  well  and  suffer  for  it,  ye  shall  take  it  patiently,  this 
is  acceptable  with  God."  All  this  bears  on  the  hard  con- 
dition of  the  slave  at  that  time ;  that  the  slave  would  be 
put  to  grief  wrongfully ;  that  he  would  be  buffeted  wrong- 
fully ;  that  he  would  be  reviled  wrongfully.  Now  what 
are  these  slaves  to  do  if  they  are  Christians?  He  does 
not  preach  as  a  member  of  an  abolition  society.  He 
doesn't  propose  to  introduce  any  revolutionary  measures. 
But  he  tries  to  fix  the  minds  of  those  slaves  upon  better 
things :  First,  that  they  can  as  slaves  illustrate  the  truth 


WHAT  TO  PUT  AWAY  245 

and  the  power  of  the  Christian  religion,  and  can  show 
forth  the  excellencies  of  God.  That  if  they  are  bufifeted, 
so  was  Christ.  If  they  are  reviled,  so  was  Christ.  If 
they  are  maltreated,  so  was  He.  "The  thing  to  do,  what- 
ever your  lot,  is  in  it  to  illustrate  the  power  of  the  Chris- 
tian religion,  and  you  will  do  more  good  that  way  than  by 
trying  to  organize  a  slave  insurrection." 

I  have  a  Texas  friend  who  wishes  me  to  quit  preaching 
the  gospel  and  preach  socialism.  He  says  that  I  am 
wasting  my  time  and  gifts.  I  tell  him  that  I  am  following 
in  the  footsteps  of  our  Lord.  I  go  through  the  world 
seeing  many  things  that  are  wrong — wrong  politically, 
wrong  economically,  wrong  in  a  thousand  other  ways.  If 
I  enter  into  this  political  arena,  try  to  revolutionize  the 
world  as  a  politician,  I  will  certainly  fail  as  a  preacher. 
Other  men  before  me  have  tried  it  and  failed.  I  do  a 
better  thing ;  I  can  preach  a  gospel  whose  principles  will 
reform  society,  whose  principles  will  ultimately  bring 
about  the  greatest  good  to  the  greatest  number  in  all 
things. 

The  third  chapter,  from  the  first  verse  to  the  seventh 
verse,  inclusive,  discusses  the  relation  of  husband  and 
wife,  and  very  much  as  Paul  discusses  it  in  his  letters. 
In  every  letter  Paul  writes,  he  takes  up  the  case  of  the 
slave,  the  husband,  the  wife,  the  citizen,  the  child,  the 
parent.  Peter  does  the  same  thing,  and  shows  that  real 
Christianity  in  the  heart  of  a  good  woman  will  prompt 
her  to  honor  and  respect  her  husband,  to  be  obedient, 
and  will  prompt  the  husband  to  love  and  cherish  the  wife, 
and  that  a  married  state  blessed  by  the  power  of  religion 
will  do  more  toward  reforming  society  than  all  the  divorce 
courts  in  the  world.  That  is  his  way  of  dealing  with 
social,  domestic,  economic,  and  political  questions. 

He  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  Christian  women, 


246  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

like  all  other  women,  like  adornment.  That  is  character- 
istic of  the  sex,  and  he  is  not  depreciating  a  woman 
wearing  nice  apparel — that  is  not  the  thing  with  him — 
but  in  the  method  of  the  New  Testament  teaching,  he  is 
showing  a  higher  kind  of  adornment  when  he  says  this: 
"Whose  adorning  let  it  not  be  the  outward  adorning  of 
braiding  the  hair,  and  of  wearing  jewels  of  gold,  or  of 
putting  on  of  apparel ;  but  let  it  be  the  hidden  man  of 
the  heart,  in  the  incorruptible  apparel  of  a  meek  and 
quiet  spirit,  which  is,  in  the  sight  of  God,  of  great  price." 
There  are  many  teachings  of  the  New  Testament  that, 
taken  on  their  face,  seem  to  condemn  external  adornment 
altogether. 

Dr.  Sampey  in  a  judicious  article  calls  attention  to  the 
power  of  contrast  in  certain  Hebraisms,  and  shows  how 
that  principle  goes  all  through  the  New  Testament. 
When  God  says,  "I  will  have  none  of  their  offerings," 
He  does  not  mean  that  He  would  not  accept  the  offerings 
which  He  had  commanded  them  to  make,  but  He  means 
when  compared  to  what  they  signify  they  are  but  the 
chaff  of  the  wheat.  If  a  woman  lives  merely  for  dress, 
and  her  adornment  is  merely  jewels  and  silks  and  ribbons 
and  things  of  that  kind,  then  it  is  a  very  poor  kind  of 
external  beauty.  But  over  against  that  he  puts  the  true 
adornment  of  the  soul,  and  virtues  and  graces  of  the 
Christian  religion,  and  that  gives  her  in  the  true  idea  of 
dress,  the  most  shining  apparel  in  the  world.  That  is 
his  thought. 

In  the  tenth  verse  of  the  third  chapter,  we  reach  a  new 
idea  in  the  analysis :  The  ivay  of  a  happy  life.  Let  us  see 
what  it  is :  "He  that  would  love  life  and  see  good  days, 
let  him  refrain  his  tongue  from  evil,  and  his  lips  that 
they  speak  no  guile.  Let  him  turn  away  from  the  evil 
and  do  good.    Let  him  seek  peace  and  pursue  it." 


WHAT  TO  PUT  AWAY  24-7 

Here  are  three  directions  for  a  happy  Hfe,  summed 
up  as  follows :  "Watch  out  what  you  do ;  watch  out  about 
what  you  pursue."  Now  if  a  man  goes  around  talking 
evil  and  doing  evil  and  pursuing  fusses,  it  is  impossible 
for  him  to  have  a  happy  Hfe.  The  reason  is  expressed 
in  the  12th  verse :  "For  the  eyes  of  the  Lord  are  upon 
the  righteous  and  His  ears  are  open  to  their  supplica- 
tions; but  the  face  of  the  Lord  is  against  them  that  do 
evil."  That  is  the  reason.  God  is  above  man,  His  eye 
is  on  us  all  the  time,  His  ears  listen.  We  are  under  His 
jurisdiction.  His  face  is  against  them  that  do  evil.  His 
favor  is  toward  them  that  do  well.  Now  the  question 
comes  up  about  a  happy  life.  I  am  to  do  these  three 
things :  Keep  my  tongue  from  evil,  turn  away  from  doing 
evil,  and  live  in  peace  and  not  fusses.  And  the  reason 
that  those  directions  will  bring  happiness  is  that  God  is 
against  the  bad  and  for  the  good.  That  constitutes  the 
way  of  a  happy  hfe. 

At  the  beginning  of  a  great  meeting  in  Caldwell,  a 
good  many  years  ago,  the  old  pastor  preached  the  open- 
ing sermon  from  that  text:  "The  eyes  of  the  Lord  are 
upon  the  righteous,  and  His  ears  are  open  unto  their 
supplications,  but  the  face  of  the  Lord  is  against  them 
that  do  evil ;"  and  his  theme  was  the  government  of  God. 
It  was  a  fine  introduction  to  a  revival. 

Continuing  the  thought,  he  says,  "Who  is  he  that  will 
harm  you  if  ye  be  zealous  of  that  which  is  good?"  That 
is,  take  the  general  run  of  things.  H  one  move  to  a 
community,  and  while  living  in  it  he  does  not  speak  evil 
of  his  neighbors,  he  does  good  and  not  evil,  and  he 
avoids  fusses  and  cultivates  peace,  now  who  is  going  to 
harm  him?  Now  as  a  general  rule  (there  are  exceptions 
to  it)  he  will  be  liked  in  the  community. 

That  is  the  rule ;  now  the  exceptions :  "But  even  if  ye 


248  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

should  suffer  for  righteousness  sake,  blessed  are  ye ;  fear 
not  their  fear,  neither  be  troubled."  Suppose  as  an  ex- 
ception that  one  moves  into  a  community  and  lives  right 
and  talks  right,  but  on  account  of  his  religion  he  is  sub- 
jected to  ill-treatment — and  that  may  happen,  has  hap- 
pened, there  is  always  a  possibility  of  that  exception 
coming  in — now  what  if  he  does  suffer,  he  is  blessed  in 
it ;  nobody  can  take  anything  away  from  him  that  God 
cannot  restore  to  him  a  thousandfold,  or  give  him  some- 
thing better  in  the  place  of  it. 

The  spirits  in  prison:  This  is  a  hard  passage.  Let  us 
look  at  it  carefully:  "Christ  being  put  to  death  in  the 
flesh  but  made  alive  in  the  spirit;  in  which  He  also  went 
and  preached  unto  the  spirits  in  prison  that  aforetime 
were  disobedient,  when  the  long-suffering  of  God  waited 
in  the  days  of  Noah  while  the  ark  was  a-preparing, 
wherein  few,  that  is,  eight  souls,  were  saved  through 
water;  which  also  after  a  true  likeness  doth  now  save 
you,  even  baptism,  not  the  putting  away  of  the  filth  of 
the  flesh,  but  the  interrogation  of  a  good  conscience 
toward  God,  through  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ ; 
who  is  on  the  right  hand  of  God,  having  gone  into 
heaven;  angels  and  authorities  and  powers  being  made 
subject  unto  Him." 

I  call  attention  first  to  the  textual  difficulty.  The  ver- 
sion that  I  have  before  me  reads  this  way:  "being  put 
to  death  in  the  flesh,  and  made  alive  in  the  spirit."  This 
translation  contrasts  Christ's  soul  with  Christ's  flesh, 
and  says  that  He  was  put  to  death  in  His  body,  but  made 
alive  in  His  soul.  The  same  translators  take  the  passage 
in  Timothy  3:  "was  manifested  in  the  flesh,  justified  in 
the  spirit,"  and  there  they  again  make  the  spirit  refer 
to  Christ's  soul  as  opposed  to  Christ's  body. 

I  take  the  position  unhesitatingly  that  they  are  in  error 


WHAT  TO  PUT  AWAY  249 

in  both  places — that  there  is  no  reference  in  either  place 
to  the  soul  of  Christ.  Christ  was  put  to  death  in  the 
flesh,  and  that  flesh  was  made  alive  by  the  Holy  Spirit. 
That  is  what  it  means.  He  was  declared  to  be  the  Son 
of  God  with  power  by  His  resurrection,  and  in  other 
places  He  was  manifested  in  the  flesh,  and  so  manifested 
He  was  justified  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  "The  Spirit"  refers 
not  to  Christ's  soul  in  either  passage,  but  refers  to  the 
Holy  Spirit.  That  with  me  is  a  capital  point.  It  is  the 
later  modern  radical  critics  that  insist  on  making  "spirit" 
in  both'of  these  passages  refer  not  to  the  Holy  Spirit,  but 
to  Christ's  soul,  and  hence  their  teaching  of  this  passage 
is  that  Christ  died  as  to  His  body,  but  was  made  alive  as 
to  His  soul,  and  hence  in  His  soul  He  went  and  preached 
to  the  other  spirits. 

My  first  objection  to  their  view  is  this:  That  Christ 
was  not  made  alive  in  His  soul  at  the  time  He  was  put 
to  death  in  His  flesh — nothing  was  the  matter  with  His 
soul.  The  question  is  whether  it  means  the  Holy  Spirit 
or  Christ's  soul.    I  say  it  means  the  Holy  Spirit. 

The  second  thought  is :  "being  put  to  death  in  the  flesh, 
but  made  alive  by  the  Holy  Spirit."  His  body  that  was 
put  to  death  was  revived  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  made  alive, 
in  which  Holy  Spirit  He  went  (in  past  tense)  and 
preached  to  those  that  are  now  disembodied  spirits  and  in 
prison.  But  when  He  preached  to  them,  they  were  not 
disembodied.  Christ  preached  through  the  Holy  Spirit 
to  the  antediluvians  while  the  ark  was  preparing,  as  Gen. 
6 :  30  says,  "My  Spirit  will  not  always  strive  with  man." 
Through  the  Holy  Spirit,  Christ  was  preaching  to  those 
people  while  the  ark  was  preparing.  The  very  same  Holy 
Spirit,  when  Christ's  body  died,  made  it  alive  in  the 
resurrection.  So  in  answering  the  question :  "To  whom 
did  He  preach  ?"  I  say  that  He  preached  to  the  antedilu- 


260  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

vians.  When  did  He  preach  to  them  ?  When  they  were 
disobedient,  in  the  days  of  Noah.  How  did  He  preach 
to  them?  By  the  Holy  Spirit.  Where  are  those  people 
now?  They  are  in  prison,  shut  up  unto  the  judgment 
of  the  great  day ;  they  are  the  dead  now,  and  in  the  next 
chapter  he  will  say  the  gospel  was  preached  to  them  that 
are  dead  for  this  cause.  They  are  dead  now,  but  when 
they  were  living  they  had  the  gospel  preached  to  them, 
but  they  rejected  it. 

The  theory  of  the  translation  before  us  is  open  to  these 
insuperable  objections: 

(i)  It  fails  to  explain  how  He  was  "made  alive  in  His 
own  spirit  when  His  body  died." 

(2)  It  teaches  a  probation  after  death  which  is  opposed 
to  all  the  trend  of  the  scriptures. 

(3)  It  provides  a  work  for  Christ's  disembodied  soul 
contrary  to  the  work  elsewhere  assigned  to  Him  in  that 
state,  namely.  His  going  to  the  Father  (Luke  23:46)  to 
make  immediate  atonement  by  offering  His  blood  shed 
on  the  cross  (see  Leviticus  16  and  Hebrews).  He  was 
quite  elsewhere  and  on  quite  a  different  work. 

(4)  It  fails  to  explain  why,  if  His  disembodied  soul 
went  on  such  a  mission,  it  was  limited  to  antediluvians 
only. 

(5)  It  robs  Him  of  His  Old  Testament  work  through 
the  Holy  Spirit. 

(6)  It  leaves  out  the  making  alive  of  Christ's  dead  body 
by  the  Holy  Spirit  (Rom.  1:4),  so  powerfully  described 
by  Peter  elsewhere  (Acts  2:22-36). 

I  believe  that  Jesus  entered  into  hell,  but  when?  Not 
as  a  disembodied  soul  between  the  death  and  resurrection 
of  His  body,  nor  after  He  arose  from  the  dead.  We  have 
clearly  before  seen  what  He  did  while  disembodied,  and 
what  He  did  after  His  body  was  raised.    He  entered  into 


WHAT  TO  PUT  AWAY  251 

hell,  soul  and  body,  on  the  cross,  in  the  three  hours  of 
darkness,  when  He  was  forsaken  of  the  Father,  and  met 
the  dragon  and  his  hosts,  and  triumphed  over  them, 
making  a  show  of  them  openly. 

To  show  that  the  Spirit  here  is  the  Holy  Spirit,  and 
that  the  Holy  Spirit  made  alive  Christ's  body  that  was  put 
to  death  in  the  flesh,  he  is  now  going  to  bring  in  the  sub- 
ject of  the  resurrection.  The  Holy  Spirit  made  Christ's 
body  alive  in  the  resurrection,  and  the  illustration  used  is 
the  waters  of  the  flood — that  the  waters  of  the  flood,  in 
a  certain  sense,  saved  a  few.  The  very  waters  that  de- 
stroyed man  saved  a  few ;  that  is,  those  that  obeyed  God 
and  got  into  the  ark,  eight  of  them,  they  were  saved  by 
the  water.  Now  he  says  in  like  figure,  or  the  antitype 
of  the  flood,  is  baptism,  and  that  baptism  now  saves  us ; 
that  is  what  it  says.  The  only  question  is  how  does  it 
save  us?  He  answers  both  positively  and  negatively. 
Negatively  he  says  it  does  not  put  away  the  filth  of  the 
flesh.  That  is  what  it  does  not  do.  It  doesn't  mean  that. 
There,  flesh  means  the  carnal  nature,  and  not  the  dirt 
that  is  on  the  outside  of  the  body.  H  we  take  the  word, 
"flesh,"  and  run  it  through  the  New  Testament,  we  will 
see  what  he  refers  to  there,  that  baptism  does  not  cleanse 
the  carnal  nature.  So  the  salvation  referred  to  is  not 
an  internal,  spiritual  cleansing  of  the  nature.  When  we 
talk  about  baptism  saving  us,  we  must  be  sure  that  it 
does  not  accomplish  that  salvation.  Well,  what  salvation 
does  it  accomplish?  It  accomplishes  a  salvation  by  an- 
swering a  good  conscience  through  the  resurrection  of 
Jesus  Christ  from  the  dead.    Well,  what  is  that  ? 

Let  us  get  at  the  precise  thought.  We  want  to  see  how 
baptism  saves.  It  saves  us  in  a  figure,  not  in  reality.  It 
does  not  put  away  carnal  nature.  It  saves  us  in  a  figure 
— the  figure  of  the  resurrection.     Now  that  is  exactly 


252  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

what  it  does.  It  gives  us  a  picture  of  salvation,  a  pictorial 
symbolical  resurrection.  In  baptism  we  are  buried,  and 
in  baptism  we  are  raised.  Now  through  the  resurrection 
of  Jesus  Christ,  which  that  baptism  memorializes — that  is 
salvation.  Not  a  real  one,  but  a  figurative  one — that  pic- 
torial representation  of  salvation.  That  as  we  have  been 
buried  in  the  likeness  of  Christ's  death,  so  shall  we  be  in 
the  likeness  of  His  resurrection.  It  is  a  likeness,  not  the 
thing  itself — a  picture.  It  is  true  that  baptism  washes 
away  sin,  because  Ananias  says  to  Paul,  "Arise  and  wash 
away  thy  sins."  But  it  does  not  actually  wash  away  sins, 
because  it  is  the  blood  of  Christ  that  cleanses  us  from  all 
sin.  It  does  wash  away  sin  symbolically  and  in  no  other 
way.  Baptism  saves,  not  actually,  by  change  of  the  carnal 
nature,  but  in  a  figure.  It  is  the  figure  of  the  resurrec- 
tion.    That  is  the  way  it  saves. 

The  literature  upon  that  passage  in  Peter  is  immense, 
and  there  are  a  great  many  people  in  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land to-day  that  hold  that  in  the  interval  between  the 
death  and  the  resurrection  of  Christ  He  spent  the  time 
visiting  lost  souls  and  preaching  to  them.  We  have 
already  shown  what  He  was  doing  between  His  death  and 
the  resurrection :  that  His  spirit  went  to  the  Father ;  that 
it  went  with  the  penitent  thief  into  the  Paradise  of  God; 
that  He  went  there  to  sprinkle  His  blood  of  expiation  on 
the  mercy-seat  in  order  to  make  atonement,  and  then  He 
came  back.  And  when  He  came,  there  took  place  what 
this  text  says,  "He  who  was  put  to  death  in  the  flesh 
and  made  alive  by  the  Holy  Spirit,"  as  to  His  body. 
The  Holy  Spirit  raised  His  body.  This  text  has  not  a 
word  to  say  about  what  Christ's  spirit  did  between  His 
death  and  His  resurrection — not  a  thing.  But  this  text 
does  say  that  in  the  Holy  Spirit,  before  He  ever  became 
manifest  in  the  flesh,  He  used  to  preach,  but  not  in  per- 


WHAT  TO  PUT  AWAY  253 

son.  In  other  words,  He  is  Jesus  Christ,  the  same  yes- 
terday, to-day,  and  forever,  and  that  through  the  Holy 
Spirit  the  gospel  was  preached  in  Old  Testament  times. 
That  Abraham  was  able  to  see  Christ's  day  and  rejoiced; 
that  Abel  was  enabled  by  faith  to  take  hold  of  Christ. 
All  these  people  back  yonder  in  the  old  world  had  the 
gospel  preached  to  them.  They  had  light,  and  it  was 
spiritual  light. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  On  the  thought  in  2:2,  that  the  soul  needs  a  healthful  and 
nutritious  diet  as  well  as  the  body,  what  things  must  be  put  away 
as  poisonous,  and  what  must  be  used  as  nourishing? 

2.  In  the  figure  of  a  spiritual  house,  2 :  4-10,  show  what  is  the 
Christian  temple,  what  the  foundation  and  chief  cornerstone, 
what  the  priesthood,  what  the  sacrifices,  what  the  object,  con- 
trasting each  point  with  the  Jewish  type. 

3.  In  Math.  16:18  Christ  says  to  Peter,  "On  this  rock  I  will 
build  my  church,"  and  evidently  here  (2:  4-7)  there  is  a  reference 
to  our  Lord's  words,  hence  the  question :  Who  is  the  founda- 
tion-rock on  which  the  church  is  built  as  Peter  himself  under- 
stood Christ's  words,  and  who  the  rock  as  Isaiah  understood  it, 
Isa.  28:16,  which  Peter  quoted,  and  as  Paul  understood  it, 
I  Cor.  3:  9-16? 

4.  In  2 : 9  state  the  points  of  contrast  between  Israel  after 
the  flesh  and  the  spiritual  Israel. 

5.  In  2:11-3:7  are  exhortations  to  Christians  as  pilgrims,  as 
subjects  of  human  government,  as  slaves,  as  husbands  and 
wives,  parents  and  children,  (i)  Show,  how  by  the  exhorta- 
tions Christianity  is  not  revolutionary  in  its  teachings  on  citizen- 
ship, slavery  and  society,  and  how  they  correspond  with  other 
New  Testament  teachings  on  the  same  points.  (2)  Show  the 
meaning  of  such  Hebraisms,  as  3 : 3-57. 

6.  What  the  force  of  "bare  our  sins  in  His  body  upon  the 
tree,"  or  in  other  words,  what  the  scriptural  meaning  of  "to 
bear   sins?" 

7.  What  Peter's  rule  of  a  happy  life? 

8.  On  3:18-21,  with  4:6,  answer: 

(i)  Does    "spirit,"    the    last    word    of    verse    18,    mean 
Christ's  own  human  spirit,  or  the  Holy  Spirit? 

(2)  How  did   Christ   preach   to   the  antediluvians,  /.    e., 

in  His  own  person  or  by  another,  and  if  another, 
what  other? 

(3)  When  did  He  so  preach,  while  the  antediluvians  were 

living  and  disobedient  while  the  ark  was  preparing 


254  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

and  by  the  Holy  Spirit  (Gen.  6:3),  or  to  them 
in  prison  after  death,  either  between  His  death  and 
resurrection,  or  between  his  resurrection  and 
ascension,  and  if  to  them  after  their  death  and 
imprisonment,  what  did  He  preach? 

(4)  Did    Christ,    as    the    sinner's    substitute,    enter    the 

pangs  of  hell,  when,  in  the  body  or  out  of  it, 
and  what  the  proof? 

(5)  On  4:6,  was  the  gospel  preached  to  the  dead  before 

they  died,  or  afterward? 

(6)  Show    the    difficulties    and    heresies    of    interpreting 

"spirit"  in  verse  18  as  Christ's  own  spirit  and  His 
preaching  to  men  after  their  death,  either  between 
His  own  death  and  resurrection,  or  between  His 
resurrection  and  ascension. 

(7)  On  3 :  21,  what  the  meaning  of  "filth  of  the  flesh," 

is  it  dirt  of  the  body,  or  the  defilement  of  the 
carnal  nature?  And  then  how  does  baptism  now 
save  us? 


XXI 

THE  SECOND  ADVENT 

Exposition:  I  Pet.  4:7 — 4:14 

THIS  section  commences  with  I  Peter  4:7:  "But 
the  end  of  all  things  is  at  hand."  It  is  an  impor- 
tant thing  to  notice  how  every  apostolic  writer 
dwells  upon  the  second  advent,  the  end  of  the  world, 
and  the  judgment  as  contemporaneous.  Some  people 
place  the  advent  a  long  ways  this  side  of  the  end  of  the 
world  and  of  the  general  judgment.  But  it  is  not  so 
placed  in  the  Bible.  Certain  things  come  together — 
Christ's  advent,  the  resurrection  of  the  just  and  the  un- 
just, the  general  judgment,  the  winding  up  of  earthly 
afifairs. 

Peter,  like  all  others,  makes  an  argument  upon  the 
end  of  all  things  as  at  hand,  so  that  our  next  thought  is : 
What  does  he  mean  by  saying  "at  hand"  ?  To  teach  that 
there  is  but  a  little  period  of  time  from  his  utterance  of 
this  saying  until  Christ  comes  again  ?  We  can't  find  that 
to  be  his  meaning,  because  in  his  second  letter,  where 
he  discusses  this  subject  elaborately,  he  shows  that  it  will 
be  quite  a  long  time,  so  long  that  men  will  begin  to  say: 
"Where  is  the  promise  of  His  coming?"  What  he  means, 
then,  by  "at  hand,"  and  by  "a  little  time,"  is  not  in  our 
sight,  but  in  God's  sight.  As  he  explains  it  in  his  second 
letter,  a  thousand  years  are  with  the  Lord  as  one  day 
and  one  day  is  as  a  thousand  years. 

Having  established  his  meaning  of  "at  hand,"  we  see 
how  that  form  of  expression  is  used  elsewhere  in  the 
New  Testament.  Paul  says  in  precisely  the  same  way  in 
Philippians  4:5:  "The  time  is  at  hand,"  and  James  5 : 8 

255 


256  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

says :  "It  draweth  nigh."  And  we  have  already  seen  in 
Heb.  10 :  37  it  says :  "Yet  a  little  while  and  He  that 
Cometh  shall  come  and  will  not  tarry."  When  we  get 
a  little  further  on,  we  will  see  that  I  John  2 : 8  says :  "It 
is  the  last  hour."  And  yet  in  his  book  of  Revelation  he 
shows  a  long  series  of  events  that  must  precede  the 
advent,  the  end  of  the  world,  and  the  judgment. 

But  on  the  second  advent  Peter  says,  "Therefore,  be 
ye  of  sound  mind."  If  any  theme  on  earth  calls  for 
sanity  of  mind,  it  is  the  theme  of  the  second  advent. 
That  is  the  very  theme  upon  which  people  become  un- 
sound of  mind.  Take  for  example  the  church  at  Thes- 
salonica.  Paul  preached  there  and  spoke  much  of  the 
coming  of  Christ,  and  of  that  coming  drawing  near  and 
how  they  should  watch,  whereupon  they  went  wild,  and 
were  so  sure  that  it  was  only  a  few  days  until  Christ's 
coming  that  it  was  not  worth  while  to  attend  to  the  ordi- 
nary affairs  of  life,  so  they  quit  work  and  went  around 
discussing  the  second  advent.  He  had  to  rebuke  them 
in  his  second  letter,  and  tell  them  they  misunderstood. 
We  know  that  in  the  Reformation  days  the  Mad  Men 
of  Munster  became  of  unsound  mind  in  regard  to  the 
doctrine  of  the  second  advent.  They  went  to  such  ex- 
tremes that  the  governments  of  Central  Europe  called 
out  their  forces  and  almost  destroyed  them  in  what  is 
known  as  the  Peasant  War.  A  similar  case  of  affairs 
arose  in  the  days  of  Oliver  Cromwell  and  the  English 
revolution.  They  were  called  Fifth  Monarchy  Men. 
Going  back  to  Daniel's  prophecy  about  the  four  mon- 
archies, and  then  the  monarchy  of  God  following  it,  they 
took  up  the  idea  that  the  time  was  at  hand  for  estab- 
lishing the  Fifth  Monarchy  here  upon  earth.  They  were 
great  enthusiasts  and  fanatics,  and  did  a  vast  deal  of 
harm. 


THE  SECOND  ADVENT  257 

In  the  United  States  there  have  been  several  periods 
of  that  unsoundness  of  mind  upon  the  subject  of  the 
second  advent — the  Millerites,  for  example.  Eggleston 
wrote  a  great  romance  entitled,  "The  End  of  the  World." 
He  vividly  portrays  this  great  excitement.  They  set  the 
day  when  the  world  was  coming  to  an  end,  and  made 
all  their  preparations  for  it.  Many  gave  away  their 
property,  some  beggared  themselves,  wives  and  children, 
deeding  everything  they  had  away,  and  according  to  an 
old  saying,  "Got  their  ascension  robes  ready."  Nothing 
to  do  but  put  on  their  white  robes  and  glide  up  to  heaven. 
When  the  predicted  day  came,  a  crowd  of  them  assem- 
bled to  go  up  together,  but  Christ  did  not  come,  and  they 
went  down  just  as  fast  as  they  had  come  up,  and  of 
course  a  wave  of  infidelity  followed.  They  said,  "You 
can't  believe  anything  that  is  said  in  the  Bible  upon  the 
subject."  And  so  from  fanaticism  in  one  direction  they 
turned  to  infidelity  in  another. 

Peter  says,  "Be  ye,  therefore,  of  sound  mind."  In 
every  community  there  are  excitable  people  whose 
thoughts  lead  them  to  despise  the  common  everyday  things 
of  life  and  seek  out  novelties;  they  bite  at  things  of  this 
kind.  The  Seventh  Day  Adventist  drops  his  hook  among 
them  and  catches  some ;  the  Mormon  comes  along  and 
catches  others.  About  the  second  advent  of  our  Lord, 
the  important  things  are  its  certainty  and  purposes,  not 
its  time.  We  are  sure  it  will  come,  but  it  cannot  come 
until  all  the  antecedent  things  shall  take  place,  and  our 
attitude  toward  it  should  be  to  be  sure  in  our  hearts  of 
the  fact  that  it  will  come,  and  not  that  the  power  of  the 
advent  consists  in  its  suddenness. 

He  shows  in  what  respect  this  soundness  of  mind 
should  be  manifest:  "Be  sober  unto  prayer."  "Drunk" 
is  opposite  to  "sober."     One  can  be  drunk  unto  prayer 


258  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

as  well  as  he  can  be  sober  unto  prayer.  I  remember 
once  that  an  old  lady  came  to  me  during  a  meeting  I 
was  holding,  and  said,  "You  will  never  get  a  feeling  on 
you  in  this  meeting,  until  you  appoint  a  sunrise  prayer- 
meeting."  I  said,  "It  is  certainly  a  good  thing  to  have 
prayer  at  sunrise  or  sunset,  but  you  don't  mean  to  say 
that  it  is  essential  to  the  outpouring  of  the  power  of 
God  that  we  should  lay  special  stress  upon  any  particular 
hour?"  She  said,  "Yes,  I  do.  You  appoint  a  prayer 
meeting  at  midnight,  another  at  sunrise,  and  you  will 
see  that  the  blessings  will  come."  That  is  superstition. 
God  is  ready  to  hear  His  children  at  any  time. 

I  have  seen  the  same  fanaticism  manifested  with  refer- 
ence to  prayer  in  a  preacher  insisting  that  one  could 
not  be  converted,  that  his  prayers  would  not  be  answered, 
and  that  God  would  not  answer  the  prayers  of  His  people 
for  him,  if  he  did  not  come  up  to  the  "mourner's  bench." 
Whenever  people  make  a  fetich  out  of  anything  they 
are  sure  to  go  to  the  extreme.  I  believe  very  heartily 
that  it  does  good  in  a  meeting  to  call  for  expressions 
from  the  people,  to  take  some  step  of  some  kind,  and  I 
have  seen  cases  of  those  who  came  up  to  be  prayed  for 
and  be  instructed  and  were  benefited  by  coming  together, 
coming  out  of  the  congregation  and  taking  a  front  seat 
(they  may  call  it  a  mourner's  bench  if  they  want  to ;  it 
makes  no  difference),  but  whenever  one  takes  the  posi- 
tion that  salvation  is  limited  to  a  special  spot,  or  to 
certain  conditions,  then  he  is  getting  fanatical.  I  would 
say  to  the  man  who  limits  God's  mercy  to  arbitrary  con- 
ditions prescribed  by  himself  that  he  had  better  surrender 
those  conditions,  and  every  other  condition.  One  can 
go  to  an  extreme  in  that  way.  "Be  of  sound  mind,  even 
in  prayers,  and  above  all  things,  be  fervent  in  your  love 
among  yourselves." 


THE  SECOND  ADVENT  259 

Christian  sanity  is  manifested  in  brotheriy  love  as  well 
as  upon  any  other  point.  A  man  who  goes  off  half- 
cocked,  at  a  tangent,  upon  some  particular  subject,  and 
yet  shows  that  he  has  no  love  for  the  brethren,  has  al- 
ready advertised  that  he  is  a  crank.  The  modest,  most 
humble,  and  sweetest  everyday  Christians  are  the  best. 
This  applies  to  Christians  as  stewards  of  the  manifold 
grace  of  God.  One  man  has  the  gift  of  speaking  with 
tongues.  If  he  gets  mentally  unbalanced,  he  will  want  to 
be  all  the  time  speaking  with  tongues  without  any  refer- 
ence to  the  propriety  of  the  case.  Paul  gives  an  account 
of  that  kind  of  people  in  I  Cor.  14,  where  they  turned 
the  assembly  into  a  bedlam.  He  says,  "What  is  this, 
brethren?  Everyone  of  you  hath  a  tongue,  a  psalm,  hath 
an  interpretation,"  which  was  well  enough  if  exercised 
to  edification.  But  all  commence  at  once,  here  one  speak- 
ing in  Aramaic,  another  in  German,  another  in  Latin, 
and  another  in  Greek,  one  singing  a  psalm,  one  offering  a 
prayer,  and  the  whole  becomes  a  jumble  of  confusion. 
But  "God  is  not  the  author  of  confusion."  Nothing  that 
promotes  discord  is  from  God.  "If  any  man  speak,  let 
him  speak  as  the  oracle  of  God.  You  show  your  sanity 
as  a  Christian.  When  you  speak,  let  what  you  say  in 
the  name  of  God  harmonize  with  the  teaching  of  God's 
book."  There  are  many  people  who  want  to  be  "new 
lights."  They  have  gotten  an  entirely  new  theory  about 
a  great  many  things,  and  they  are  very  anxious  to  put 
off  these  particular  things  upon  an  audience.  "Remem- 
ber," says  Peter,  "to  be  of  sound  mind,  and  if  you  speak, 
speak  as  the  oracle  of  God."  Let  what  we  say  be  not 
noted  for  its  novelty,  but  for  its  conformity  to  the  gen- 
eral rule  of  the  scriptures,  interpreting  one  scripture  by 
another  scripture. 

In  a  previous  chapter  I  have  already  discussed  from 


260  THE  PASTORAI.  EPISTLES 

the  I2th  verse  to  the  end  of  the  chapter  in  connection 
with  sufferings,  but  call  attention  to  that  i8th  verse:  "If 
the  righteous  is  scarcely  saved,  where  shall  the  ungodly 
and  the  sinner  appear?"  It  has  oftentimes  been  the 
theme  of  sermons.  The  old  Dr.  T.  C.  Teasdale,  a  great 
revivalist  in  his  day,  made  that  one  of  his  favorite  texts, 
that  the  righteous  man  is  barely  saved — just  saved,  not  a 
thing  over.  Peter's  thought  here  is  that  Christians  are 
judged  in  this  world  and  sinners  in  the  world  to  come, 
and  that  on  Christians  in  this  life,  in  this  world,  God 
visits  the  judgment  for  sins,  and  the  judgment  is  so 
heavy  at  times,  that  even  life  itself  passes  away  under 
the  afflictions  of  the  judgment.  It  is  a  good  deal  like  our 
Savior  said,  that  if  these  things  be  done  in  a  green  tree, 
what  shall  be  in  a  dry  one?  If  the  fire  is  so  hot  it  will 
make  a  green  tree  blaze,  how  quickly  will  it  kindle  a 
dead  tree?  Judgment,  he  says,  must  commence  at  the 
house  of  God ;  it  commences  there,  but  it  does  not  end 
there.  The  preceding  verse  says,  "And  if  it  begin  first 
at  us,  what  shall  be  the  end  of  them  that  obey  not  the 
gospel  of  God?"  The  thing  is  this,  that  our  salvation 
comes  through  our  Lord,  so  that  we  ourselves  are  full 
of  faults,  infirmities ;  we  commit  sin,  we  have  to  be  chas- 
tised for  it,  and  this  judgment  comes  on  us  in  this  world. 
This  is  precisely  Peter's  thought. 

I  will  give  an  incident  originally  quoted  by  a  great 
author  in  his  book  on  infidelity.  An  old  man,  a  very 
pious,  true  Christian,  was  deeply  concerned  because  his 
two  boys  were  infidels,  and  all  through  his  life  he  had 
tried  to  illustrate  the  truth  and  power  of  the  Christian 
religion  before  those  boys,  and  it  seemed  to  have  no 
effect  on  them.  They  would  not  heed  his  precepts,  nor 
follow  his  example.  Finally,  he  got  the  idea  in  his  head 
that  he  ought  to  pray  God  to  make  his  death  powerful 


THE  SECOND  ADVENT  261 

in  leading  these  boys  to  Christ,  so  when  the  time  came 
for  him  to  die,  to  his  surprise,  instead  of  everything  being 
bright  and  he  as  happy  as  an  angel  and  singing  like  a 
lark,  he  was  in  the  most  awful  distress  of  mind.  It  was 
all  dark  to  him.  Promises,  which,  when  he  was  well, 
seemed  as  bright  as  stars,  were  now  darkness,  and  in- 
stead of  being  able  to  show  his  children  the  triumphant 
glory  of  a  dying  saint,  he  was  showing  his  children  that 
he  was  groping  as  he  came  to  pass  away,  and  so  he  died. 
The  boys  observed  it  very  carefully.  They  had  expected 
the  old  man  to  die  a  very  happy  death.  They  thought  he 
was  entitled  to  it.  But  when  they  saw  a  man  that  lived 
as  righteously  as  he  had,  who  when  he  came  to  pass  away, 
had  to  go  through  deep  water,  one  said  to  the  other, 
"Tom,  if  our  father  had  such  a  time  as  that,  what  kind 
of  a  time  do  you  reckon  we  are  going  to  have?"  And 
it  influenced  their  conversion.  They  had  the  thought  of 
Peter:  "If  the  righteous  scarcely  be  saved,  where  shall 
the  sinner  and  the  ungodly  appear?"  If  he  had  died 
very  happy,  they  would  have  taken  it  as  a  matter  of 
course,  and  would  not  have  been  disturbed  in  mind  at 
all,  but  when  they  saw  him  go  through  such  an  ordeal 
as  that,  it  began  to  shake  them  as  to  what  would  become 
of  them. 

How  to  Shepherd  the  Flock.  In  the  fifth  chapter, 
from  the  first  to  the  fourth  verse,  he  gives  directions 
about  how  to  shepherd  the  flock.  His  exhortations  are  to 
those  who  have  charge  of  the  church.  Let  us  look  at 
every  point,  commencing  with  the  second  verse:  "Tend 
the  flock  of  God  which  is  among  you,  exercising  the 
oversight,  not  of  constraint."  The  first  thought  is  to 
give  attention  to  the  flock.  "If  you  are  the  pastor  of 
the  church,  no  one  else  is  under  such  an  obligation. 
Take  care  of  that  flock."     The  shepherd  that  does  not 


262  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

take  care  of  his  sheep,  will  find  them  scattering.  I 
don't  care  what  the  cause  is,  if  he  is  so  continually  away 
from  them  and  his  mind  upon  other  matters  that  he  does 
not  thoughtfully  consider  the  needs  of  his  congregation, 
then  he  has  failed  to  attend  to  the  flock.  In  Ezekiel  33 
what  is  meant  by  tending  the  flock  is  fully  explained.  If 
any  have  wandered  away,  they  should  be  brought  back ; 
if  any  are  weak,  they  should  be  protected  from  the 
strong;  if  any  are  wounded,  they  should  be  healed;  if 
any  are  sick,  they  should  be  ministered  unto.  That  is 
attention.  I  sometimes  read  over  again  a  book  that  is 
a  romance,  and  which  is  worth  anybody's  reading.  I 
regard  it  as  one  of  the  greatest  books  ever  written — 
Lorna  Doone.  In  that  book  there  is  an  account  of  the 
greatest  cold  spell  that  had  come  within  the  knowledge 
of  men  up  to  the  year  1640.  The  frost  was  terrific. 
Every  night  from  the  middle  of  December,  or  near  the 
end  of  December,  to  the  first  of  March,  was  a  hard  freeze. 
It  froze  until  the  trees  would  burst  open  with  a  sound 
like  thunder.  Millions  of  cattle  died,  and  birds  and  deer. 
Deer  would  come  right  up  to  the  house  and  eat  out  of 
the  hand.  In  showing  how  to  take  care  of  the  flock  in 
such  weather  as  that,  we  have  a  very  felicitous  account. 
Mr.  John  Ridd  gets  up  and  finds  the  whole  world  snowed 
under,  and  he  goes  out  and  can't  even  find  his  flock  of 
sheep  at  all.  He  goes  to  where  they  were  placed  and 
begins  to  dig  down  into  the  snow.  He  has  his  sheepdog 
looking  for  his  lost  sheep,  and  as  he  gets  away  down 
under  the  snow,  he  hears  a  sheep,  "baa!"  and  he  digs 
until  he  uncovers  the  whole  flock,  and  he  carries  one 
under  each  arm,  sixty-six  times,  carrying  two  at  a  time, 
through  that  deep  snow  to  a  place  of  safety.  Now,  that 
is  tending  the  flock.  That  kind  of  concern  must  be  in  the 
heart  of  the  pastor.    If  one  has  charge  of  a  church  and 


THE  SECOND  ADVENT  263 

there  come  dangers  to  the  congregation  when  they  are 
Hkely  to  be  swept  away,  then  he  ought  to  be  there  at 
the  time,  moving  among  his  people,  ministering  unto 
them.  As  our  Lord  said  to  Peter,  "Lovest  thou  me? 
Then,  if  you  do,  shepherd  my  sheep ;  take  care  of  my 
sheep."  So  Peter  hands  down  the  advice.  He  says, 
"The  elders  therefore  among  you  I  exhort,  who  am  a 
fellow  elder,  a  witness  of  the  sufferings  of  Christ,  also  a 
partaker  of  the  glory  that  shall  be  revealed,  tend  the 
flock." 

His  next  thought  is :  "exercising  the  oversight."  From 
that  word,  "oversight,"  we  get  bishop,  overseer,  epis- 
copos,  bishopric;  exercising  the  bishopric,  or  the  over- 
sight, not  by  constraint.  When  I  was  in  Paris,  Texas, 
holding  a  meeting,  a  Methodist  preacher  said  to  me, 
"You  seem  to  be  a  good  man,  and  just  because  I  am  a 
Methodist  preacher,  you  won't  refuse  to  advise  me?"  I 
asked  him  what  the  trouble  was.  "Well,  it  is  this:  I 
am  forced  on  this  congregation.  I  know  I  ought  not 
to  stay  any  longer,  and  they  don't  want  me  any  longer, 
and  they  won't  pay  me  any  longer,  and  my  family  is 
actually  suffering.  Now,  what  would  you  do  under 
those  circumstances  ?"  I  said,  "Well,  beloved,  /  ivouldn't 
be  under  those  circumstances.  You  are  put  over  these 
people  by  constraint.  You  don't  want  to  stay  and  they 
don't  want  you  to  stay,  and  the  Bishop  is  mad,  and  in 
order  to  show  them  that  they  nor  you  have  a  voice  in 
things  of  this  kind,  he  has  sent  the  same  man  back  over 
the  double  protest  to  show  his  authority."  I  went  among 
the  Methodists  and  took  up  a  collection  for  that  preacher. 
I  told  him  that  if  I  had  the  power  to  correct  his  position, 
I  would. 

In  other  words,  when  we  take  charge  of  a  flock,  we 
should  not  go  by  constraint;  never  go  except  willingly. 


264  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

That  is  a  thing  above  all  others  in  the  world,  that  calls 
for  voluntary  action.  I  had  a  Baptist  preacher  once,  to 
bring  this  trouble  to  me.  He  says,  "I  feel  impressed  of 
God  to  do  so  and  so,  but  I  am  just  simply  impelled  to  go 
home."  I  said,  "Who  is  compelling  you?"  "Well,"  he 
says,  "the  people."  I  said,  "Who  is  the  greater,  the 
people  or  God?"  and  I  quoted  this  very  scripture  to  him 
and  said.  "Don't  take  the  oversight  anywhere  by  con- 
straint. If  you  go,  go  with  your  will,  because  you  are 
willing  to  go  there,  only  see  to  it  that  your  will  coincides 
with  God's  will,  and  not  the  people's  will.  Not  of  con- 
straint, but  willingly,  according  to  the  will  of  God,  not 
for  filthy  lucre,  but  of  a  ready  mind." 

We  have  the  same  thought  presented  from  another 
point  of  view.  First,  it  is  an  external  constraint ;  now 
it  is  an  internal  constraint :  "I  don't  want  to  go  to  that 
place,  but  I  have  a  very  large  family  and  they  are  at  an 
expensive  stage  just  now,  and  they  pay  twice  as  much  as 
this  other  place."  I  said  to  him,  "Which  place  now  do 
you  feel  the  easiest  in  when  you  get  up  to  preach?  In 
which  place  does  your  mind  act  more  readily?"  He 
answered,  "That  place,  yonder."  "Well,"  I  said,  "don't 
go  to  the  other  place  for  filthy  lucre's  sake."  I  don't  say 
that  one  can't  have  a  ready  mind  in  going  to  the  church 
that  pays  him  what  he  ought  to  have,  but  I  do  say  that 
whenever  two  places  are  before  him,  and  on  the  one  side 
the  argument  is  the  amount  of  salary,  and  on  the  other 
side  is  the  readiness  of  his  mind,  he  might  as  well  be 
constrained  by  a  Methodist  bishop  as  by  the  almighty 
dollar. 

"Neither  as  lording  it  over  the  charge  allotted  to  you, 
but  making  yourselves  ensamples  to  the  flock."  When 
we  take  the  oversight,  we  don't  take  it  as  a  lord,  as  we 
are  not  boss  and  master.    That  is  opposed  to  the  principle 


THE  SECOND  ADVENT  265 

of  Christian  logic.  Some  preachers  are  imperious  in 
disposition,  impatient  at  suggestions  from  anybody  else, 
wanting  to  run  things  with  a  high  hand,  and  revolting 
against  any  mind  but  their  own  mind,  in  the  way  a  thing 
is  to  be  done.  Peter  says,  "Don't  do  it  that  way.  God 
made  you  the  leader ;  no  other  man  can  be  the  leader  but 
the  pastor.  You  are  the  leader,  but  don't  you  lead  like 
an  overseer  of  slaves.  Be  sure  to  lead  by  a  good 
example." 

Now  comes  the  reward  of  the  pastor:  "And  when 
the  Chief  Shepherd  shall  be  manifested,  ye  shall  receive 
a  crown  of  glory  that  fadeth  not  away."  The  Chief 
Shepherd  is  the  Lord  Himself :  "I  am  the  Good  Shep- 
herd." He  has  gone  up  to  heaven,  and  He  is  coming 
back.  When  He  shall  appear,  we  will  receive  our  reward. 
We  won't  get  it  until  then,  but  we  will  get  it  then. 

From  the  5th  verse  to  the  7th  is  the  exhortation  to 
humility.  Here  the  question  is  asked  :  What  is  the  differ- 
ence between  "ensamples"  and  "examples"?  None,  ma- 
terially. Those  words  are  used  interchangeably.  Let 
us  read  over  at  least  what  he  says  about  humility:  "All 
of  you  gird  yourselves  with  humility,  to  serve  one  an- 
other." That  carries  us  back  to  the  foot-washing  lesson. 
"For  God  resisteth  the  proud,  but  giveth  grace  to  the 
humble."  "Humble  yourselves,  therefore,  under  the 
mighty  hand  of  God,  that  He  may  exalt  you  in  due  time, 
casting  all  your  anxiety  upon  Him,  because  He  careth 
for  you."  It  is  not  very  difficult  to  become  humble 
before  God.  Sometimes  I  am  proud,  but  I  get  down  off 
that  ladder  mighty  quick.  But  here  is  a  hard  thing  for 
me  to  do :  "Casting  all  your  anxiety  upon  Him,  because 
He  careth  for  you."  The  thing  that  eats  a  man  up  is 
anxiety.  It  seems  to  me  to  be  the  hardest  precept  in 
the  Bible:  "Be  anxious  for  nothing;  be  not  anxious  for 


266  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

the  morrow;  be  not  anxious  what  ye  shall  eat  or  what 
ye  shall  wear,  in  everything  He  careth  for  you."  That 
is  a  very  hard  thing  to  do.  Some  people  can  do  it 
beautifully. 

I  have  already  called  attention  to  the  8th  verse:  "Be 
sober,  be  watchful ;  your  adversary,  the  devil,  as  a  roaring 
lion  walketh  about,  seeking  whom  he  may  devour,  whom 
withstand  steadfast  in  your  faith,  knowing  that  the  same 
sufferings  are  accomplished  in  your  brethren  who  are  in 
the  world."  Now,  Peter,  after  that  sifting  process,  never 
doubts  about  a  personal  devil.  There  are  some  people 
who  think  there  is  no  such  thing  as  a  personal  devil,  and 
just  as  long  as  the  devil  can  make  one  think  that,  he  has 
him  just  where  he  wants  him.  He  has  his  goods,  keeping 
them  in  peace,  but  it  is  when  one  begins  to  get  out  from 
under  his  influence  that  he  stirs  himself  and  lets  him 
know  he  is  there. 

The  most  beautiful  thing  in  the  letter  is  the  loth  verse, 
which  I  have  discussed  under  the  question  of  suffering. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  On  I  Peter  4:  7,  what  the  meaning  of  "the  end  of  all  things 
is  at  hand,"  comparing  with  other  New  Testament  passages? 

2.  Cite  historical  examples  of  "unsound  mind"  on  Christ's 
final  advent  and  the  end  of  the  world. 

3.  Cite  examples  of  the  necessity  of  being  "sober  unto 
prayer." 

4.  What  the  meaning  and  application  of:  "If  the  righteous 
scarcely  be  saved,  etc?"     Illustrate. 

5.  State  Peter's  several  points  of  exhortation  on  shepherding 
the   flock.     Explain   and   illustrate   each. 

6.  When,  and  from  whom,  does  the  faithful  under-shepherd 
receive  his  reward? 

7.  What  Peter's  lesson  on  humility?     Illustrate. 

8.  What  Peter's  experience  with  the  Devil  and  what  his 
lesson  here? 


XXII 

THE  BOOK  OF  SECOND  PETER:    AN  INTRO- 
DUCTION—OUTLINE—EXPOSITION 

Scripture:  All  References  and  1:1-15 

AA^  Introduction  to  Second  Peter.  First  of  all  I 
call  attention  to  the  fact  that  from  the  middle  of 
the  second  century  to  the  end  of  the  fourth  cen- 
tury certain  New  Testament  books  had  not  attained  so 
wide  a  circulation  and  general  acceptance  as  others.  Gen- 
erally speaking  these  were  the  smaller  books,  including 
the  letter  of  James,  the  letters  of  Peter,  the  letter  of  Jude, 
the  two  short  letters  of  John,  and  the  two  longer  books, 
Hebrews  and  Revelation.  These  were  called  Antilego- 
mina,  that  is,  some  people  somewhere  expressed  doubt 
as  to  the  place  that  these  books  should  have  in  the  New 
Testament.  The  book  which  more  than  any  other  was 
doubted  was  this  second  letter  of  Peter.  I  mean  to  say 
that  the  historical  evidence  for  the  canonicity  of  this 
letter  is  less  satisfactory  than  that  of  any  other,  so  that 
if  it  can  be  shown  that  the  evidence  is  sufficient  for  this 
book,  we  need  not  question  that  of  any  other. 

I  next  call  attention  to  a  well-known  fact  of  history 
which  accounts  for  the  lack  of  more  evidence  than  is 
obtainable.  This  fact  was  the  persecution  under  the 
emperor  Diocletian,  which  extended  from  a.  d.  303  to 
311.  The  decree  of  Diocletian  was  universal,  that  all 
church  buildings  should  be  razed  to  the  ground  and  all 
the  Holy  Books  burned. 

We  have  in  Eusebius,  the  father  of  church  history, 

267 


268  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

who  lived  from  a.  d.  270  to  340,  two  books,  Vols.  8  and  9, 
devoted  to  this  persecution.  The  famous  i6th  chapter  of 
the  Decline  of  the  Roman  Empire,  by  the  infidel  Gibbon, 
tells  much  of  the  rigor  of  this  persecution.  This  decree 
was  executed  with  great  rigor  in  the  Roman  provinces  of 
Africa,  Egypt,  Palestine,  Syria,  Asia  Minor,  Italy,  and 
Spain.  Thus  thousands  of  manuscripts  of  the  New  Tes- 
tament, or  parts  of  it,  were  destroyed  under  this  decree. 

In  this  connection  I  wish  to  commend  to  the  reader 
McGarvey's  "Text  and  Canon  of  the  New  Testament" 
as  an  exceedingly  able  but  terse  presentation  of  the  main 
facts  of  historical  introduction,  from  which  as  a  matter 
of  convenience  I  cite  most  of  the  testimony  below. 

The  first  testimony  is  the  catalog  of  the  New  Testament 
books,  and  the  declarations  concerning  them,  issued  by 
the  council  of  Carthage  in  the  Roman  province  of  North 
Africa.  This  council  was  held  a.  d.  397.  They  issued  a 
catalog  of  all  of  the  New  Testament  books  as  we  have 
them,  accompanied  with  two  declarations :  First,  "It  was 
also  determined,  that  besides  the  canonical  Scriptures, 
nothing  be  read  in  the  churches  under  the  title  of  divine 
Scriptures."  Second,  "We  have  received  from  our 
fathers  that  these  are  to  be  read  in  the  churches." 

The  oldest  manuscript  we  now  possess  of  the  New 
Testament  is  the  Sinaitic,  discovered  by  Tischendorf  in 
the  convent  on  Mt.  Sinai.  He  estimates  the  date  of  this 
manuscript  at  a.  d.  350,  and  thinks  it  to  be  older  than 
that.  This  manuscript  has  the  entire  New  Testament  in 
it — every  book. 

I  next  cite  the  testimony  of  Athanasius,  who  lived 
between  the  dates  a.  d.  326  and  373.  He  also  gives  a 
complete  list  of  all  our  New  Testament  books,  and  says, 
"These  books  were  delivered  to  the  fathers  by  eye-wit- 
nesses and  ministers  of  the  word;  I  have  learned  this 


THE  BOOK  OF  SECOND  PETER         269 

from  the  beginning,  and  that  they  are  the  fountains  of 
salvation ;  that  he  who  thirsts  may  be  satisfied  with  the 
oracles  contained  in  them.  In  them  alone  the  doctrine  of 
religion  is  taught ;  let  no  one  add  to  them,  nor  take  any- 
thing for  them." 

The  next  testimony  is  that  of  Cyril,  a  noted  pastor  of 
the  church  at  Jerusalem,  living  from  a.  d.  315  to  388.  In 
one  of  his  catechetical  lectures  to  candidates  for  baptism 
he  gives  a  list  of  the  books  to  be  read  as  inspired  Scrip- 
tures. This  list  includes  all  our  New  Testament  books 
except  the  book  of  Revelation. 

The  next  witness  is  Eusebius,  the  father  of  Church 
History,  who  lived  from  a.  d.  270  to  340.  He  passed 
through  the  Diocletian  persecution,  which  destroyed  the 
church  buildings  and  burned  the  sacred  writings.  He 
recites  by  name  every  New  Testament  book  that  we  have, 
but  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  some  have  questioned 
Hebrews,  James,  Jude,  II  Peter,  II  and  III  John,  and 
Revelation. 

The  next  witness  is  Origen,  whom  Dr.  Broadus  classes 
as  the  greatest  Christian  scholar  of  the  fathers,  the  man 
who  prepared  the  Hexapla,  or  six-column  New  Testa- 
ment. He  himself  suffered  martyrdom,  living  from  a.  d. 
185  to  254.  In  his  Greek  works  he  cites  the  New  Testa- 
ment books,  but  like  Eusebius,  refers  to  certain  question- 
ings of  some  of  them.  In  the  Latin  version  of  his 
Homily  on  Joshua,  he  distinctly  attributes  two  letters  to 
Peter,  and  gives  all  our  N.  T.  books. 

The  next  witness  is  Clement,  of  Alexandria,  who  was 
Origen's  teacher,  living  from  a.  d.  165  to  220.  His  testi- 
mony is  much  the  same  as  that  of  Origen's. 

The  next  point  that  I  make  is  that  every  book  in  the 
world  must  be  older  than  any  translation  of  it  into  other 
languages.    We  have  two  translations  into  the  Coptic  Ian- 


270  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

guage,  one  for  lower  Egypt  and  one  for  upper  Egypt. 
These  translations,  called  the  Memphitic  and  Thebaic 
translations,  or  at  least  portions  of  them,  were  made 
before  the  close  of  the  second  century,  and  both  of  these 
versions  contain  all  of  the  books  of  the  New  Testament, 
including  II  Peter.  Revelation,  however,  is  usually  in  a 
separate  volume. 

So  far  the  evidence  has  been  virtually  a  testimony  of 
catalogues,  whether  in  manuscripts,  versions,  decrees  of 
councils  or  authors,  and  this  evidence  for  the  N.  T. 
books  extending  from  the  last  quarter  of  the  fourth 
century  to  the  last  quarter  of  the  second  century,  two 
full  centuries,  always  includes  II  Peter. 

Another  kind  of  evidence  is  derived  from  quotations. 
The  extant  writings  of  the  early  Christian  authors  bear 
testimony  to  Bible  books  by  quotations,  direct  or  indirect, 
or  by  allusions.  This  evidence  is  not  nearly  so  strong  for 
II  Peter  as  for  other  N.  T.  books.  Many  citations, 
pro  and  con,  are  given  by  modern  Christian  scholars. 
What  one  considers  a  quotation  or  evident  allusion  others 
question.  The  author  has  read  them  all.  Those  that  in 
his  judgment  have  evidential  value  are  the  following: 

Origen,  a.  d.  185-254,  whose  catalogue  testimony  has 
been  cited,  quoted  II  Pet.  i :  4  with  the  formula,  "Peter 
said,"  and  II  Pet.  2 :  16  with  the  formula,  "As  the  Scrip- 
ture says  in  a  certain  place."  (See  Westcott,  Canon  of 
N.  T.)  Melito,  bishop  of  Sardis,  a.  d.  170,  in  the  region 
addressed  by  Peter,  in  writing  of  both  a  water  flood  and 
a  fire  flood  evidently  alludes  to  II  Pet.  3 : 5-10. 

Theophilus,  bishop  of  Antioch,  A.  D.  168-180,  in  a 
treatise,  and  Hippolytus,  bishop  of  Portus,  A.  D.  220, 
both  allude  to  II  Pet.  i :  20-21. 

Firmiliau,  bishop  of  the  Cappadocian  Caesarea,  in  a 
letter  to  Cypnian  of   Carthage  referring  to   Peter  and 


THE  BOOK  OF  SECOND  PETER         271 

Paul  as  blessed  Apostles,  says  that  in  their  epistles  they 
"execrated  heretics  and  warned  us  to  avoid  them,"  but 
it  is  in  his  second  letter  alone  we  find  Peter's  "execra- 
tions of  heretics  and  warnings  to  avoid  them." 

Treuens,  135-200  A.  D.,  born  about  40  years  after  the 
death  of  John,  the  last  apostle,  in  two  instances  uses 
almost  the  exact  words  in  II  Pet.  3:8:  "One  day  is 
with  the  Lord  as  a  thousand  years." 

Justin  Martyr  wrote  about  A.  D.  146,  and  as  in  Treu- 
ens above,  uses  Peter's  words  of  "the  day  of  the  Lord 
as  a  thousand  years."  In  another  place  commenting  on 
the  delay  to  send  Satan  and  those  who  follow  him  to 
their  final  punishment  assigns  the  precise  reasons  given 
in  II  Pet.  3  -.g. 

Clement,  pastor  at  Rome,  a  man  of  apostolic  times,  in 
his  epistle  to  the  Corinthians,  twice  refers  to  Noah  as  a 
preacher,  (i)  of  "repentance,"  (2)  of  "regeneration  to 
the  world  through  his  ministry."  But  nowhere  in  the 
Bible  is  Noah  called  a  preacher  except  in  II  Pet.  2 : 5. 

We  now  must  consider  what  the  writer  of  the  letter 
says  of  himself. 

7;  i:  He  expressly  calls  himself  Simon  Peter,  the 
Apostle,  using  the  Aramaic  name  "Symeon"  as  James 
does  in  Acts  15. 

1:14:  He  claims  that  the  Lord  Jesus  had  shown  him 
how  he  was  to  die.  This  is  confirmed  in  John  21  :  18,  19, 
which  gospel  was  written  after  this  letter. 

1:16-18:  He  claims  to  have  been  an  eye-witness  of 
the  transfiguration  of  our  Lord  recorded  in  Math.  18; 
Mark  9;  Luke  9,  and  gives  the  clearest  import  of  the 
transfiguration  to  be  found  in  the  Bible. 

3:15,  16:  He  claims  acquaintance  with  all  of  Paul's 
epistles,  classes  them  as  Scriptures,  and  says  that  Paul 
wrote  to  the  Hebrews  whom  he  is  addressing. 


272  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Making  these  claims  the  letter  is  a  barefaced  forgery 
if  the  author  was  not  the  Apostle  Peter.  There  is  no 
escape  from  this  conclusion.  Hebrews  may  be  canonical, 
even  if  Paul  did  not  write  it — but  not  so  this  letter  if  the 
Apostle  Peter  did  not  write  it.  But,  utterly  unlike  the 
many  forgeries  attributed  to  apostolic  authors,  there  is 
nothing  in  the  subject-matter  of  this  letter  unworthy  of 
an  apostle  and  out  of  harmony  with  indisputable  N.  T. 
books. 

The  author  accepts  H  Peter  as  apostolic  according  to 
its  claims. 

OUTLINE 

First,  The  Address,  H  Peter  i :  i  and  3:1:  "Simon 
Peter,  a  servant  and  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ,  to  them  that 
have  obtained  like  precious  faith  with  us.  *  *  *  This 
is  now,  beloved,  the  second  epistle  I  write  unto  you," 
evidently  referring  to  these  words  of  I  Peter:  "Peter 
an  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ,  to  the  elect  who  are  sojourners 
of  the  dispersion  in  Pontus,  Cappadocia,  Asia,  Galatia, 
and  Bithynia."  In  this  address  he  calls  himself  "Symeon," 
the  Aramaic  form  of  which,  "Simon,"  is  Greek.  We 
find  the  same  Aramaic  form  used  by  James  in  Acts  15. 

Second,  The  Greeting,  contained  in  verses  2-4  inclu- 
sive :  "Grace  to  you,  and  peace  be  multiplied  in  the 
knowledge  of  God  and  of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord."  The 
third  verse  tells  how  the  multiplication  takes  place : 
"Seeing  that  His  divine  power  hath  granted  unto  us  all 
things  that  pertain  to  life  and  Godliness  through  a  knowl- 
edge of  Him  that  calls  us  through  His  own  knowledge 
and  virtue,  whereby  He  hath  granted  unto  us  His  precious 
and  exceeding  great  promises  that  through  these  ye  may 
become  partakers  of  the  divine  nature,  having  escaped 
from  the  corruption  that  is  in  the  world  by  lusts."    The 


THE  BOOK  OF  SECOND  PETER         273 

grace  and  the  peace,  these  are  to  be  multiplied  through 
the  promises. 

Third,  The  Heavenly  Progress  by  Additions,  i :  5  to  ii, 
with  the  abundant  entrance. 

Fourth,  The  Need  of  Remembrance,  i :  12-15. 

Fifth,  The  Prophecy  of  the  Manner  of  Peter's  Death, 
1 :  14. 

Sixth,  The  Import  of  the  Transfiguration  of  Jesus, 
1 :  16  to  18. 

Seventh,  The  Surer  Word  of  Prophecy,  how  it  came, 
and  how  to  interpret  it,  i :  19-21. 

Eighth,  The  Foretold  False  Teachers,  their  heresies 
and  condemnation,  Chapter  2. 

Ninth,  The  Second  Advent  and  Its  Lesson,  chapter  3. 

Now  let  us  expound  item  three,  a  heavenly  progress, 
or  a  progress  by  a  series  of  heavenly  additions,  and  is 
thus  expressed :  "Yea,  and  for  this  very  cause  adding 
on  your  part  all  diligence,  in  your  faith  supply  virtue, 
and  in  your  virtue  knowledge,  and  in  your  knowledge 
self-control,  and  in  your  self-control  patience,  and  in 
your  patience  Godliness,  and  in  your  Godliness  brotherly 
kindness,  and  in  your  brotherly  kindness  love.  For  if 
these  things  are  yours  and  abound,  they  make  you  to  be 
not  idle  nor  unfruitful  unto  the  knowledge  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ.  For  he  that  lacketh  these  things  is  blind, 
seeing  only  what  is  near,  having  forgotten  the  cleansing 
from  his  old  sins.  Wherefore,  brethren,  give  the  more 
diligence  to  make  your  calling  and  election  sure,  for  if  ye 
do  these  things  ye  shall  never  stumble." 

Here  we  have  the  grace-part  in  the  exceeding  great 
and  precious  promises,  and  then  what  we  are  to  add  on 
our  part.  Peter,  no  more  than  Paul,  ever  had  the  idea 
of  a  converted  man  remaining  a  babe  in  Christ.  Both 
of  them  urge  a  leaving  of  the   foundations  and  going 


274  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

onward  to  maturity,  growing  in  grace  and  the  knowledge 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

When  I  was  a  school  boy  at  Baylor  University  at  Inde- 
pendence I  heard  old  Father  Hosea  Garrett,  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Baylor  University, 
preach  a  sermon  on  this  heavenly  addition  of  Peter.  It 
was  delivered  in  an  exceedingly  homely,  quaint,  and 
simple  style.  He  commenced  by  saying:  "I  am  Presi- 
dent of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Baylor  University.  I 
have  .very  little  education,  but  I  have  been  through  the 
rule  of  three  in  Smiley's  Arithmetic  and  I  do  not  forget 
that  the  first  rule  in  that  arithmetic  is  addition.  But  in 
this  text  we  have  some  spiritual  arithmetic,  adding  one 
spiritual  thing  to  another,  and  we  have  the  sum  or  result 
in  two  ways :  'He  that  lacketh  these  things  is  blind,  hav- 
ing forgotten  the  cleansing  of  himself  from  his  old  sins, 
but  if  you  add  these  things  you  reach  this  sum.'  Thus 
shall  be  supplied  unto  you  the  entrance  to  the  eternal 
kingdom  of  our  Lord  and  Savior  Jesus  Christ."  Point- 
ing his  finger  at  diflferent  persons  in  the  audience,  he 
would  say:  "Have  you  faith?"  Then,  "Have  you 
added  virtue  or  courage?  If  you  have  added  courage, 
have  you  also  added  knowledge;  and  if  knowledge,  have 
you  added  self-control,  are  you  able  to  control  your  own 
spirit?  He  that  ruleth  his  own  spirit  is  greater  than  one 
that  taketh  a  city."  I  sat  there  and  looked  at  the  old 
man,  in  his  quaint  way  discussing  spiritual  multiplication 
and  addition,  and  witnessed  the  efifect  on  the  audience. 
The  personality  of  the  man  stood  behind  his  sermon. 
It  was  very  unlike  a  sermon  by  a  sophomore  preacher. 
A  young  man  wants  to  scrape  down  the  star  dust  and 
cover  himself,  and  gild  himself  with  its  glitter,  but  not 
so  with  this  preacher. 

When  I  was  a  young  preacher  I  preached  a  sermon 


THE  BOOK  OF  SECOND  PETER         275 

on  that  "abundant  entrance,"  and  took  for  an  illustration 
two  ships  sailing  from  the  same  port,  and  bound  to  the 
same  port  beyond  the  ocean.  The  captain  and  sailors  of 
one  of  them  added  everything  that  was  necessary  on  their 
part  to  co-operate  with  the  ocean  winds  and  tides  in 
reaching  their  destination  in  safety.  One  of  them  got 
to  the  port  with  every  mast  standing,  every  sail  set,  and 
with  the  cargo  unimpaired  and  the  passengers  all  safe. 
It  was  welcomed  with  a  salute  of  the  batteries  from  the 
shore,  and  the  waving  of  flags,  crowds  of  people  came 
down  to  see  the  ocean  voyager  reach  its  destination  in 
safety,  with  everything  entrusted  to  it  preserved. 

On  the  other  ship  neither  the  captain  nor  crew  added 
on  their  part  the  things  necessary  to  a  safe  and  pros- 
perous voyage.  They  did  indeed  reach  the  destination 
after  a  while,  but  dismasted,  shrouds  rent  to  tatters, 
towed  in  by  a  harbor  tug,  almost  a  wreck.  "He  that 
lacketh  these  things  is  dim-eyed,  he  cannot  see  things 
afar  ofif."  Point  to  a  beacon  and  ask  him  if  he  sees  it. 
"No,  I  cannot  see  that  far."  Point  to  the  tall  mountains 
of  grace  that  mark  the  shore  between  this  world  and  the 
next:  "Do  you  see  the  light  on  those  mountain  tops?" 
"No,  I  cannot  see  that  far."  "Do  you  see  that  rift  in 
the  eternal  heavens  through  which  the  light  shines  down 
and  bathes  you  in  glory?  Do  you  see  Jesus  standing  at 
the  right  hand  of  the  Majesty  on  high  ready  to  welcome 
you?  Do  you  see  the  angels  poised  on  wings  of  obedi- 
ence interested  as  to  your  outcome?  Do  you  see  the  re- 
deemed who  have  passed  on  before,  and  are  waiting  and 
watching  for  you?"     "No,  I  cannot  see  any  of  these." 

Faith  is  the  eye  of  the  soul,  and  its  hand,  and  its  heart. 
It  sees  things  invisible  to  the  natural  eye,  it  apprehends 
what  cannot  be  touched  by  the  human  hand.  It  feels 
what  the  natural  heart  cannot  feel.     Yea,   faith  is  the 


276  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

imagination  of  the  soul.  Imagination  is  a  painter;  it  can 
create  and  reproduce;  as  a  divine  element  it  can  outline 
things,  and  follow  up  the  outline  and  put  in  the  coloring 
and  make  it  appear  before  us  with  all  its  blossoms,  fruits, 
and  foliage.  A  man  that  is  dim-eyed  has  no  vision ;  the 
powers  of  the  world  to  come  do  not  take  hold  upon  him ; 
he  seems  to  have  forgotten  that  he  was  purged  from  his 
old  sins ;  he  doubts  his  acceptance  with  God ;  he  fails  in 
his  heavenly  additions. 

In  this  connection  also  is  the  appeal  of  Peter  to  mem- 
ory. It  is  that  faculty  of  the  mind  by  which  we  recall 
former  things.  He  says,  "As  long  as  I  am  in  this  taber- 
nacle I  must  stir  you  up  by  putting  you  in  remembrance." 
Memory  survives  death.  When  the  rich  man  in  hell  ap- 
pealed to  Abraham,  that  patriarch  replied :  "Son,  re- 
member that  in  yonder  world  you  had  your  good  things, 
and  likewise  Lazarus  evil  things."  Indeed,  memory 
united  with  conscience  constitutes  the  very  eternity  of 
hell. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  New  Testament  books  were  latest  in  receiving  gen- 
eral acceptance  as  canonical? 

2.  Which  of  these  most  and  longest  doubted? 

3.  Tell  about  the  great  persecution  which  destroyed  so  much 
evidence  not  now  attainable  and  where  you  find  a  history  of 
the  persecution. 

4.  Give  the  testimony  of  the  Council  at  Carthage  and  its 
declarations   concerning   all  the  New   Testament  books. 

5.  What  famous  manuscript  gives  them  all  and  what  its  date? 

6.  What  early  versions  give  them  all  and  their  date? 

7.  Give  the  evidences  of  the  Catalogue  of  Athanasius,  its 
date  and  declarations. 

8.  Give  the  evidence  and  date  of  Cyril's  Catechism. 

9.  Give  summary  of  evidence  on  quotations  and  allusions. 

10.  What  does  the  letter  itself  say  of  the  author? 

11.  Why  is  this  letter  a  forgery  if  the  author  was  not  the 
Apostle  Peter? 

12.  Give  outline. 

13.  Give  the  heavenly  Addition. 


XXIII 

IMPORT   OF  THE  TRANSFIGURATION   OF 
JESUS  AND  FALSE  TEACHERS 

Scriptures:  II  Pet.  1:16-2:21 

THIS  discussion  commences  with  II  Peter  i :  16, 
and  the  item  of  the  analysis  is  the  import  of  the 
transfiguration  of  Jesus.  The  reader  will  find 
the  historical  account  of  the  transfiguration  in  Math. 
17,  Mark  8,  and  Luke  9,  and  he  should  very  carefully 
study  (the  better  way  is  as  it  is  presented  in  Broadus' 
Harmony)  the  account  of  the  transfiguration. 

I  will  refer  very  briefly  to  the  history.  Just  after  the 
great  confession  of  Peter  recorded  in  Math.  16,  when 
Christ  said,  "Upon  this  rock  I  will  build  my  church  and 
the  gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail  against  it,"  He  began 
to  show  plainly  to  His  disciples  that  He  must  go  to 
Jerusalem  and  be  put  to  death,  whereupon  Peter  pro- 
tested. He  was  not  yet  ready  to  accept  the  idea  of 
Christ  dying.  In  order  to  fix  the  right  view  of  the 
death  of  Christ  upon  the  minds  of  these  disciples  that 
were  still  clinging  to  the  Jewish  notion  of  the  Kingdom, 
Christ  took  three  of  the  disciples,  Peter,  James,  and 
John,  and  went  upon  a  mountain.  Before  He  went  He 
stated  that  there  were  some  of  them  standing  there  who 
would  never  taste  death  until  they  should  see  the  Son 
of  man  coming  in  His  kingdom. 

It  has  always  been  a  difficult  thing  with  commentators 
to  explain  how   it   was  that   He  could  say  that  some 

279 


£80  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

people  that  heard  Him  would  never  taste  of  death  until 
they  saw  Him  coming  in  His  kingdom.  The  transfigura- 
tion, according  to  Peter,  was  the  fulfillment  of  that 
promise.  Peter  says  here  in  this  connection,  "We  did 
not  follow  cunningly  devised  fables  when  we  made  known 
unto  you  the  power  and  coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
but  we  were  eye-witnesses  of  His  majesty.  For  He 
received  from  God  the  Father  honor  and  glory,  when 
there  was  borne  such  a  voice  to  Him  by  the  Majestic 
Glory,  'This  is  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I  am  well 
pleased,'  and  this  voice  we  ourselves  heard  borne  out 
of  heaven,  when  we  were  with  Him  in  the  holy  mount." 
Mark  it  well,  Peter  says  that  when  he  preached  the 
final  advent  of  Christ,  that  he  was  not  following  cun- 
ningly devised  fables.  He  was  preaching  something  of 
which  he  had,  in  a  certain  sense,  been  an  eye-witness. 
The  question,  then,  is  in  what  sense  was  the  trans- 
figuration a  second  coming  of  Christ?  The  answer  to  it 
is  that  it  was  a  miniature  representation,  or  foreshadow- 
ing, of  the  majesty  and  power  of  the  second  advent.  In 
other  words,  there  passed  over  Christ's  person  a  trans- 
figuration, a  manifestation  of  His  glory,  such  glory  as 
He  will  have  when  He  comes  again.  That  glory  radiates 
from  Christ.  It  was  the  kind  of  glory  in  which  He  will 
come  to  judge  the  world. 

In  the  next  place,  when  He  comes  He  will  come  exer- 
cising two  great  powers :  One  will  be  resurrection  power, 
and  the  other  will  be  the  changing  of  the  living  saints 
in  a  moment,  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  and  so  that 
transfiguration  scene  presented  those  two  thoughts  in 
miniature,  in  that,  Moses  appeared  to  them,  who  died, 
and  Elijah  appeared  to  them  who  did  not  die  but  was 
changed  in  a  moment.  So  that  Moses  represents  the 
class  who  died  and  who,  at  the  second  coming  of  Christ, 


TRANSFIGURATION  OF  JESUS  281 

will  be  raised  from  the  dead ;  and  Elijah  represents  the 
class  at  the  second  advent  of  Christ,  who  will,  in  the 
twinkling  of  an  eye,  be  changed  and  fitted  for  their 
heavenly  estate. 

It  is  remarkable  that,  while  Peter  looked  upon  the 
death  of  Christ  with  abhorrence,  Moses  and  Elijah  ap- 
peared there  to  talk  with  Him  about  His  death.  It  was 
the  most  significant  event  of  the  world,  the  death  of 
Christ.  Moses  was  the  lawgiver,  and  Elijah  the  prophet. 
Now,  in  that  sense  the  transfiguration  represented  the 
final  coming  of  our  Lord,  and  Peter  quotes  it  for  that 
purpose. 

Now  we  come  to  the  19th  verse:  "And  we  have  the 
word  of  prophecy  made  more  sure;  whereunto  ye  do 
well  that  ye  take  heed,  as  unto  a  lamp  shining  in  a  dark 
place,  until  the  day  dawn,  and  the  day-star  arise  in  your 
hearts."  That  describes  the  nature  and  value  of  prophecy. 
Prophecy  foreshows  a  coming  event,  and  its  value  is 
compared  to  a  lamp  shining  in  a  dark  place  and  to  the 
morning  star  which  heralds  the  coming  dawn.  That 
lamp  is  a  long  ways  better  than  nothing.  If  one  were 
in  the  night  in  an  unknown  country,  he  would  like  very 
much  to  have  a  lantern.  The  lantern  would  not  illu- 
minate the  whole  landscape,  but  it  would  illumine  a  small 
space  right  near  about.  It  would  not  illumine  all  the 
course  at  one  time,  but  would  show  the  one  how  to  take 
the  next  step.  And  as  the  lantern  moves  with  him  it 
would  guide  him  step  by  step.  So  the  morning  star, 
while  not  the  day  itself,  foretells  its  speedy  approach 
and  only  pales  in  the  brighter  light  of  the  dawning. 
Now,  as  that  lamp  ceases  to  be  valuable  after  the  day 
comes,  so  when  the  fulfillment  of  the  prophecy 
comes,  then  what  was  dimly  understood  is  thoroughly 
understood. 


282  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Peter's  precise  thought  seems  to  be  this:  "I  was  an 
eye-witness  of  the  majesty  and  power  of  the  final 
advent.  But  prophecy  is  surer  than  sight,  though  its 
light  be  but  as  a  lantern  in  the  night,  or  as  the  day-star. 
You  do  well  to  take  heed  to  prophecy."  It  is  on  a  line 
with  the  thought  of  Abraham,  in  speaking  to  the  rich 
man :  "Moses  and  the  prophets  are  better  testimony  than 
Lazarus,  risen  from  the  dead." 

In  other  words,  Peter's  idea  was  this:  "It  is  true  I 
saw  the  second  advent  unfolded  in  the  transfiguration, 
but  you  are  not  dependent  on  what  I  saw.  You  have 
for  your  guidance  the  unerring  word  of  God.  Prophecy 
now  holds  the  right  of  way.  It  is  all  the  light  we  have. 
But  its  fulfillment  is  coming,  which  is  perfect  light. 
Then  you  will  not  need  my  testimony  of  what  I  saw, 
nor  prophecy  itself.  The  dawn  is  better  light  than  lan- 
terns and  morning  stars." 

In  verses  20  and  21,  the  closing  paragraph  of  this 
chapter,  he  sets  forth  the  reason  of  the  present  value 
of  prophecy  and  how  alone  it  is  to  be  interpreted. 

1.  It  never  came  by  the  will  of  man. 

2.  Men  wrote  or  spoke  as  they  were  moved  by  the 
Holy  Spirit. 

3.  It  is  not  of  man  to  interpret  it.  Only  the  illumina- 
tion of  the  Holy  Spirit,  its  author,  can  bring  out  its 
meaning. 

This  is  one  of  the  best  texts  in  the  Bible  on  inspira- 
tion. We  have  already  seen  that  the  prophets,  under 
the  influence  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  foretold  things  to 
come,  and  then  would  search  what  time  or  manner  of 
time  these  things  would  be,  the  date  of  it,  and  the  cir- 
cumstances of  the  date.  They  were  moved  to  tell  it 
just  that  way.  They  did  not  thoroughly  understand  it. 
It  was  a  subject  of  their  own  contemplation  and  investi- 


TRANSFIGURATION  OF  JESUS  283 

gation,  and  was  so  to  the  angels.  They  can't  interpret 
the  promises  and  the  prohecies  of  God.  They  can  only 
look  into  them,  and  as  the  church,  in  carrying  out  the  will 
of  God,  unfolds  His  purposes,  they  can  learn  them  by 
the  unfolding,  but  they  can  not  know  them  beforehand. 
The  second  chapter  of  this  letter  is  devoted  to  false 
teachers.  The  teachers  here  referred  to  are  the  Gnostics, 
and  in  the  letter  to  the  Ephesians  and  Colossians  I  have 
already  explained  the  Gnostic  philosophy ;  that,  as  a 
philosophy,  it  attempted  to  account  for  the  creation,  and 
for  sin;  that  it  claimed  to  have  a  subjective  knowledge 
and  was  more  reliable  than  the  written  word  of  God. 
That  it  made  Christ  a  subordinate  eon  or  emanation  from 
God,  and  that  inasmuch  as  sin  resided  in  matter,  one 
form  in  which  this  philosophy  shaped  itself  was  that 
there  was  no  harm  in  any  kind  of  sensual  indulgencies. 
That  the  soul  could  not  sin,  and  that  the  body  was  just 
matter,  and  so  it  made  no  difference  if  one  did  get  drunk, 
or  if  he  did  go  into  all  forms  of  lasciviousness  and  sen- 
suality. Inasmuch  as  he  is  a  child  of  God,  he  will  be 
saved.  One  might  do  just  whatever  he  pleased  to  do, 
since  he  is  not  under  law  at  all,  but  free.  Now,  that 
was  the  philosophy,  and,  as  explained  in  the  other  dis- 
cussions, the  method  of  this  philosophy  was  not  by 
public  teaching,  but  by  private  teaching.  They  would 
come  to  families  or  to  individuals  and  say  to  them: 
"Gnosticism  is  only  for  a  cultured  few,  and  we  will 
initiate  you  into  its  mysteries  at  so  much  a  head.  Let  the 
great  body  of  common  people  come  together  in  assemblies 
if  they  want  to.  You  don't  need  to  go  to  church.  You 
don't  need  anything  of  that  kind."  That  philosophy 
started  in  Proconsular  Asia,  and  Peter  is  addressing  his 
two  letters  to  that  section  of  the  country.  He  says  there 
were  false  prophets  in  the  old  times,  and  that  there  were 


284  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

false  teachers  among  them,  and  in  this  letter  and  in  Jude 
we  have  a  very  vivid  description  of  these  teachers  and 
the  errors  of  their  teaching,  and  the  most  vivid  descrip- 
tion setting  forth  their  doom.  In  the  second  chapter, 
then,  we  have  these  false  teachers  presented  as  follows: 

1,  What  they  teach  is  false, 

2,  In  their  character  they  are  lascivious  or  sensual. 

3.  They  are  covetous,  they  are  teaching  things  in  order 
to  make  money. 

4.  They  despise  dignities  or  dominion.  They  set  at 
naught  the  apostolic  offices  of  Paul  and  Peter ;  they  dis- 
regard church  government.  A  pastor  doesn't  amount 
to  anything;  they  are  just  like  beasts  that  have  no 
reason. 

In  other  words,  as  a  wolf  follows  his  own  blood-lust, 
these  men  follow  their  instincts.  They  revel  in  the  day- 
time. Then  he  sets  them  forth  in  pictures.  He  says 
they  are  wells  or  springs  without  any  water  in  them. 
They  are  mists  driven  by  the  storm.  They  are  like  the 
dog  that  returneth  to  his  vomit,  and  the  sow  that  was 
washed  to  her  wallowing  in  the  mire.  These  are  very 
powerful  descriptions.  Nowhere  in  the  Bible  is  such 
language  used  to  describe  the  false  teachers  as  in  the 
second  letter  of  Peter  and  in  the  letter  of  Jude.  He  then 
tells  us  about  their  methods.  They  come  in  privily.  These 
are  the  abominable  heresies  they  teach :  the  denial  of  the 
Lord,  the  subordinate  place  in  which  they  put  Him,  and 
His  word,  it  makes  no  difference  how  one  lives.  They 
come  offering  liberty,  when  they  themselves  are  the 
slaves  of  corruption.  The  whole  chapter  is  devoted  to 
them. 

He  replies  to  their  teaching  and  of  the  life  that  fol- 
lows such  teaching  by  citing  certain  great  facts.  The 
first  fact  is  that  God  has  demonstrated  in  the  history  of 


TRANSFIGURATION  OF  JESUS  285 

the  past  that  whosoever  goes  into  heresy  and  teaches 
abominable  doctrines  shall  certainly  be  punished,  and 
fearfully  punished,  and  he  takes  as  his  first  example: 
"If  God  spared  not  angels  when  they  sinned,  but  cast 
them  down  to  hell  and  committed  them  to  pits  of  dark- 
ness to  be  reserved  unto  judgment;  if  the  angels,  the 
bright  shining  spirits  that  stand  around  His  throne,  can- 
not escape  sharp  eternal  and  condign  punishment,  how 
can  these  men  expect  to  escape?" 

The  next  example  that  he  cites  is  the  case  of  the 
antediluvians.  These  people  lived  before  the  flood.  They 
would  not  hear  Enoch,  they  would  not  hear  Methuselah, 
they  would  not  hear  Noah.  They  gave  themselves  up  to 
this  world.  There  were  giants  among  them.  The  whole 
earth  was  filled  with  violence.  There  was  no  purity  left 
upon  the  earth.  Homes  were  defiled,  honor  lost. 
Woman's  name  was  held  as  an  outcast  thing,  and  they 
lived  like  wild  beasts,  and  God  swept  that  world-  away. 

The  next  fact  that  he  cites  is  the  case  of  Sodom  and 
Gomorrah.  We  find  the  account  of  it  in  Genesis,  and 
reference  to  it  in  a  number  of  the  prophets,  particularly 
Isaiah.  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  had  a  preacher,  Lot. 
His  righteous  soul  was  vexed  by  the  fearful  crimes  that 
he  witnessed  every  day.  They  paid  no  attention  to  his 
warning.  All  of  the  cities  of  the  plains  were  given  up 
to  the  most  abominable  vileness  of  life,  so  shameful 
that  I  cannot  speak  about  it.  It  would  make  a  man 
blush  to  read  it  ofif  by  himself.  It  won't  do  to  talk 
about,  even  when  men  are  talking  to  men.  He  says 
those  cities  were  swallowed  up  in  the  wrath  of  God, 
suffering  the  vengeance  of  eternal  fire,  and  on  those 
three  great  facts — the  punishment  of  the  angels,  the 
punishment  of  the  antediluvians,  the  punishment  of 
Sodom  and  Gomorrah,  we  do  know  that  God  can  take 


286  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

care  of  His  people  and  punish  the  wicked.  He  saved 
Noah,  and  he  saved  Lot.    The  others  perished. 

There  is  one  other  thought  in  the  chapter  that  needs 
to  be  brought  out.  It  is  presented  in  the  loth  and  nth 
verses:  "Daring,  self-willed,  they  tremble  not  to  rail  at 
dignities :  whereas  angels,  though  greater  in  might  and 
power,  bring  not  a  railing  judgment  against  them  before 
the  Lord."  Peter  seems  to  refer  to  this  remarkable 
passage  in  Zechariah  3 :  "And  he  showed  me  Joshua,  the 
high  priest,  standing  before  the  angel  of  Jehovah,  and 
Satan  standing  at  his  right  hand  to  be  his  adversary.  And 
Jehovah  said  unto  Satan :  Jehovah  rebuke  thee,  O  Satan ; 
yea,  Jehovah  that  hath  chosen  Jerusalem,  rebuke  thee: 
is  not  this  a  brand  plucked  out  of  the  fire?  Now  Joshua 
was  clothed  with  filthy  garments,  and  was  standing  before 
him  saying:  Take  the  filthy  garments  off  of  him.  And 
unto  him  he  said.  Behold,  I  have  caused  thine  iniquity 
to  pass  from  thee,  and  I  will  clothe  thee  with  rich  apparel. 
And  I  said,  let  them  set  a  clean  mitre  upon  his  head, 
etc." 

There  the  high  priest,  Joshua,  and  Zerubbabel  were 
endeavoring  to  rebuild  the  temple  and  the  case  came  up 
before  God.  The  devil  appeared  as  an  accuser,  and  re- 
viled the  high  priest,  saying  that  those  people  were  not 
worthy  of  restoration.  The  angel  of  the  Lord  says, 
"The  Lord  rebuke  thee,  Satan."  He  did  not  bring  a 
railing  accusation  against  him  like  the  devil  had  brought 
against  Joshua,  but  he  says,  "God  rebuke  thee."  Now, 
says  Peter,  when  the  angel  would  not  rail  at  Satan,  not 
assuming  to  judge  Satan,  but  said,  "God  rebuke  thee, 
Satan,"  these  men  that  he  is  discussing  here,  they  rail 
at  dignities.  Here  were  these  apostles  whom  God  had 
appointed ;  here  were  these  pastors  of  the  church  whom 
they  disregarded,  the  discipline  of  the  church  that  they 


TRANSFIGURATION  OF  JESUS  287 

set  aside.     They  had  no  reverence  for  official  positioi; 
of  any  kind. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Where  the  history  of  the  transfiguration? 

2.  What  Peter's  interpretation  of  its  meaning? 

3.  What  thing  in  the  transfiguration  represented  the  majesty 
of  the  final  advent? 

4.  What  two  things  represented  its  power? 

5.  Elijah  appeared  in  his  glorified  body.  Did  the  appearance 
of  Moses  imply  that  he,  too,  was  in  a  glorified  body  like  Elijah's, 
i.  e.,  never  having  tasted  death,  or  in  a  risen  body,  and  if  neither, 
why? 

6.  What  does  Peter  hold  as  surer  and  better  evidence  of  the 
final  advent  than  what  he  saw  at  the  transfiguration? 

7.  In  our  Lord's  parable  of  the  rich  man  and  Lazarus,  the 
word  of  God  and  prophecy  is  said  to  be  better  than  what  other 
thing? 

8.  In  the  19th  Psalm  why  is  the  same  word  of  God  declared 
to  be  better  than  the  light  of  nature? 

9.  What  illustration  does  Peter  employ  to  show  the  value  of 
prophecy? 

10.  Did  the  prophets  themselves  always  understand  their 
prophecies? 

11.  Why  is  prophecy  not  of  private  interpretation? 

12.  How  alone  can  it  be  interpreted? 

13.  Who  the  false  teachers  of  Chapter  2? 

14.  What  their  heresies?  (i)  about  our  Lord?  (2)  about 
creation?  (3)  about  sin?  (4)  what  the  effect  of  this  teaching 
on  the  life?  (5)  what  their  method  of  teaching  and  motive? 
(6)  what  did  they  mean  by  "knowledge,"  and  how  did  this  super- 
sede the  word  of  God? 

15.  What  great  historic  examples  did  Peter  cite  as  proofs 
that  God  could  punish  the  wicked  and  save  the  righteous? 

16.  Where  alone  do  you  find  proof  that  Noah  was  a  preacher? 

17.  To  what  historic  occasion  does  Peter  refer  in  2:11? 

18.  What  was  "the  way  of  Balaam"  which  these  heretics  fol- 
lowed— 2:15? 

19.  With  what  natural  things  does  Peter  compare  these 
heretics? 

20.  How  is  their  presence  at  the  Christian  feasts  illustrated? 

21.  How  will  you  show  that  2:21  does  not  teach  the  final 
apostasy  of  real  Christians? 


XXIV 

INTRODUCTION  TO  JUDE 

Scriptures:   All  references 

THIS  letter  is  by  far  the  strangest  of  the  New 
Testament  books,  whether  we  consider  the  exter- 
nal evidence  of  it,  its  canonicity,  or  the  subject 
matter.  It  is  surprising,  not  only  that  the  external  evi- 
dence in  its  favor  is  stronger  than  for  the  earlier  letters 
of  his  more  illustrious  brother  James,  and  for  the  second 
letter  of  Peter,  which  it  strikingly  resembles,  but  also 
that  this  evidence,  unlike  that  in  the  case  of  the  James 
letter,  should  be  so  much  stronger  in  the  West  than  in 
the  East. 

The  strangeness  of  its  subject  matter  consists  of  five 
particulars,  all  of  which  must  be  carefully  considered 
in  the  exposition. 

1.  Its  likeness  to  Second  Peter:  This  likeness  is  start- 
ling enough,  without  unduly  multiplying  and  magnifying 
the  points  of  resemblance,  as  does  Canon  Farrar  in  his 
usual  extreme  way.  There  is  enough  of  the  indisputable 
resemblance  to  raise  two  questions,  both  of  which  must  be 
answered  later,  to-wit:  (a)  Which  borrows  from  the 
other?     (b)  Is  the  borrowing  outright  plagiarism? 

2.  Its  alleged  endorsement  of  a  variant  Septuagint 
rendering  of  Genesis  6:1-4,  making  the  great  sin  leading 
to  the  deluge  to  consist  of  unnatural  relations  between 
angels  and  women,  resulting  in  a  monstrous  progeny. 

288 


INTRODUCTION  TO  JUDE  g89 

3.  Its  alleged  quotation  from  and  endorsement  of  an 
apocryphal  book,  "The  Assumption  of  Moses,"  in  the 
reference  to  the  contention  of  Michael  and  Satan  for  the 
body  of  Moses. 

4.  Its  alleged  quotation  from  and  endorsement  of  the 
apocryphal  book  of  Enoch. 

5.  In  being  the  only  New  Testament  book  containing 
the  word  "Agapae,"  i.  e.,  love  feasts. 

The  author  is  frank  to  say  that  if  the  letter  clearly 
endorses  the  alleged  cohabitation  of  angels  and  women, 
and  the  doctrine  of  the  Assumption  of  Moses  (that  the 
dead  body  of  Moses  was  raised  and  glorified  without 
seeing  corruption),  and  endorses  the  apocryphal  book 
of  Enoch,  or  any  one  of  the  three,  then  it  is  in  such 
palpable  conflict  with  unmistakable,  abundant,  and  indis- 
putable Bible  teachings,  that  its  own  claim  to  inspiration 
is,  in  his  judgment,  nullified.  There  is  a  canon,  or  rule, 
of  faith  which  tests  every  doctrine  of  a  book.  Bible 
truths  are  homogeneous  and  congruous.  A  sound  doc- 
trine may  be  run  through  every  book  of  the  Bible  with- 
out collision  with  any  other  doctrine  of  the  system,  as 
all  the  bones  of  a  human  skeleton  may  be  articulated 
without  distortion  or  displacement  of  others.  But  the 
bones  of  a  brute  skeleton  will  not  fit  into  the  human 
frame.  If  we  try  to  pass  any  one  of  the  three  teachings 
named  above  through  the  Bible  books,  we  are  knocking 
other  teachings  over  right  and  left,  or  lodging  in  a 
cul-de-sac,  or  butting  against  a  wall.  This  characteristic 
of  Bible  books  and  doctrines  is  the  highest  proof  of 
inspiration.  A  trend  proves  the  course  of  a  river  more 
than  a  bend  here  or  there. 

We  now  consider,  in  order,  the  usual  questions  on 
introductions:  Who  the  author?  On  the  face  of  the 
letter,  the  answer  is  clear:    "Jude,  a  servant  of  Jesus 


290  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Christ,  and  brother  of  James,"  verse  i,  but  not  an  apostle : 
"But  ye,  beloved,  remember  ye  the  words  which  have 
been  spoken  before  by  the  apostles  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  that  they  said  unto  you,  In  the  last  time  there  shall 
be  mockers,  walking  after  their  own  ungodly  lusts," 
verses  17-18. 

The  James  here  named  is  doubtless  the  great  first 
pastor  of  the  church  at  Jerusalem,  and  author  of  the 
New  Testament  letter  of  that  name.  Then,  as  the  New 
Testament  gives  account  of  only  one  pair  of  brothers 
named  "James  and  Jude"  (Math.  13:55,  and  Mark  6:3), 
the  brother  of  our  Lord,  we  ought  to  be  done  with  this 
question. 

2.  But  what  one  purely  gratuitous  and  artificial  diffi- 
culty has  foisted  itself  upon  the  otherwise  simple  prob- 
lem of  identifying  this  Jude  and  caused  endless  compli- 
cations and  controversies?  The  baseless  theory  of  the 
perpetual  virginity  of  Mary,  the  mother  of  our  Lord. 
Apart  from  this  theory,  a  mere  glance  at  eight  groups  of 
pertinent  passages  in  the  New  Testament,  to  be  cited 
below,  with  the  observance  of  the  commonest  of  prin- 
ciples, grammatical  construction  and  interpretation,  would 
not  only  suffice  to  settle  the  question  forever,  but  to 
excite  amazement  that  any  critic  should  dare  to  advocate 
a  different  conclusion. 

3.  What  two  distinct  classes  advocate  the  theory  of 
the  perpetual  virginity  of  Mary?  Non-Romanists  and 
Romanists. 

4.  In  what  way  has  the  first  class  muddled  a  simple 
question?  Non-Romanists,  on  sentimental  grounds,  have 
been  unwilling  to  believe  that  Mary  bore  children  to 
Joseph  after  the  birth  of  our  Lord.  They  have  felt  con- 
strained, therefore,  to  set  aside  the  prima-facie  and  com- 
mon sense  meaning  of  many  scriptures,  (i)  by  a  mere 


INTRODUCTION  TO  JUDE  291 

conjecture,  based  on  no  shred  of  evidence,  that  Joseph 
was  a  widower  with  a  large  family  of  children  when 
he  married  Mary.  We  know  the  names  of  four  sons 
besides  the  sisters,  number  not  given.  If,  then,  we  allow 
for  a  decent  interval  between  the  death  of  the  alleged 
first  wife  and  marriage  with  Mary,  and  for  the  usual 
interval  between  children,  this  would  make  James  about 
fifteen  years  older  than  our  Lord,  a  condition  at  war 
with  all  the  scriptural  facts. 

Or  (2)  they  have  put  forward  another  guess  that  the 
brothers  and  sisters  of  our  Lord  were  only  cousins, 
children  of  Clopas  and  Mary's  sister.  Just  why  these 
children  live  with  their  aunt,  instead  of  their  own  par- 
ents, they  fail  to  explain.  But  having  guessed  this  much, 
they  must  guess  more,  and  identify  Clopas  with  Alpheus 
in  order  to  number  two  of  these  nephews  with  the  twelve 
apostles. 

5.  And  how  do  Romanists  muddle  the  question  ?  They, 
too,  advocate  the  second  guess  above,  and  make  the  per- 
petual virginity  of  Mary  a  part  of  an  extensive  Mariology, 
which  develops  into  a  blasphemous  Mariolatry,  deifying 
a  woman,  and  changing  the  gospel  into  another  gospel. 
She  and  not  her  Son  bruised  the  serpent's  head  (see 
their  Latin  version  of  Genesis  3: 15).  Her  own  concep- 
tion is  declared  immaculate  as  well  as  her  Son's  (see 
decree  of  Pius  IX  on  the  immaculate  conception  of  the 
Virgin  Mary,  Dec.  8,  1854).  In  an  encylical  letter,  Feb- 
ruary, 1849,  preparing  the  way  for  this  declaration,  this 
Pope  writes :  "The  whole  ground  of  our  confidence  is 
placed  in  the  most  Holy  Virgin  *  *  *  God  has 
vested  in  her  the  plenitude  of  all  good,  so  that  hence- 
forth, if  there  be  in  us  any  hope,  if  there  be  any  grace, 
if  there  be  any  salvation,  we  must  receive  it  solely  from 
her,  according  to  the  will  of  Him  who  would  have  us 


292  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

possess  all  through  Mary"  (quoted  in  Schaff's  Creeds  of 
Christendom).  Her  assumption  into  heaven  without 
death,  there  to  be  the  queen  of  heaven  and  mediatrix 
between  men  and  Jesus,  is  also  affirmed.  She  must  be 
adored. 

6.  What  sets  of  scriptural  passages  bear  on  these  two 
theories  of  the  brothers  of  our  Lord?  Eight  groups  of 
passages  bear  on  this  matter.  That  the  series  may  be 
considered  in  the  time-order,  they  are  cited  from  one 
of  our  text-books,  Broadus'  Harmony  of  the  Gospels,  so 
far  as  the  gospels  cover  them,  and  are  so  numbered : 

(i)  Harmony,  page  7,  Sec.  6,  Math.  1:18-25.  The 
section  commences  thus :  "Now  the  birth  of  Jesus  Christ 
was  on  this  wise :  When  His  mother  Mary  had  been 
betrothed  to  Joseph,  before  they  came  together  she  was 
found  with  child  of  the  Holy  Ghost."  Then  follows 
the  account  of  the  purpose  of  Joseph  to  put  her  away 
privily,  until  assured  by  the  angel  of  the  Lord:  "Fear 
not  to  take  unto  thee  Mary,  thy  wife."  The  section 
closes  thus :  "And  Joseph  *  *  *  did  as  the  angel 
of  the  Lord  commanded  and  took  unto  him  his  wife ; 
and  knew  her  not  until  she  had  brought  forth  a  Son." 
All  we  are  asked  to  do  is  to  put  on  this  passage  the  most 
natural  construction,  and  determine  for  ourselves  whether 
Joseph  and  Mary  lived  together  as  man  and  wife  after 
the  birth  of  Jesus. 

(2)  Harmony,  page  20,  Sec.  20,  John  2:12:  "After 
this  He  went  down  to  Capernaum,  He  and  His  mother 
and  His  brethren  and  His  disciples."  Here  observe 
that  Joseph  has  disappeared  from  the  history,  not  to 
appear  again.  The  last  notice  of  him  was  when  Jesus 
was  12  years  old.  He  and  Mary  had  lived  together  as 
man  and  wife  for  many  years  at  Nazareth,  until  he  died. 
Consequently  Jesus,  the  first  born,  is  the  head  of  the 


INTRODUCTION  TO  JUDE  293 

family,  and  following  him  are  his  mother  and  his  broth- 
ers (Greek,  "adelphoi").  The  primary  and  natural  mean- 
ing of  this  word  is  "brothers,"  in  this  case,  children  of 
the  same  mother.  Where  the  context  demands  it,  the 
word  may  be  applied  to  kindred  of  a  remoter  degree, 
though  the  Greek  has  quite  a  different  word  for  "cous- 
ins," never  applied  in  the  New  Testament  to  these 
"brothers."  In  like  manner  the  word  is  often  applied  to 
those  who  are  spiritual  brothers.  Yet  the  primary,  nat- 
ural meaning  of  "a  delphoi,"  sons  of  a  common  parent, 
must  be  retained  unless  the  obvious  context  demands 
another  sense.  We  do  well,  also,  to  note  that  this  passage 
distinguishes  His  brothers  from  His  disciples. 

(3)  Harmony,  pages  59-60,  Sec.  50,  Math.  12:46-50; 
Mark  3:31-35;  Luke  8:19-21.  Here  His  mother  and 
His  brothers  intrude  on  His  work,  seeking  to  interrupt 
a  public  service.  Indeed,  we  may  safely  gather  from 
Mark's  preceding  words,  3 :  20-21,  that  His  family,  accord- 
ing to  the  flesh,  are  but  following  up  what  His  friends 
sought  to  do,  i.  e.,  "lay  hold  on  Him,  for  they  said.  He  is 
beside  himself."  Their  conclusion  that  He  was  "beside 
himself"  was  drawn  from  hearing  that  His  spiritual 
duties  were  so  pressing  that  "they  could  not  so  much  as 
eat  bread."  The  restraint  they  sought  to  put  on  Him 
was  almost  tantamount  to  what  we  would  call  "serving 
a  writ  of  lunacy."  It  was  this  intrusion  that  He  sternly 
rebuked  by  saying,  "Who  is  my  mother  and  who  are  my 
brothers?  And  He  stretched  forth  His  hand  toward 
His  disciples  and  said.  Behold  my  mother  and  my  broth- 
ers," sharply  discriminating  between  brothers  according 
to  nature  and  according  to  the  Spirit.  The  whole  lesson 
not  only  implies  that  these  were  His  brothers  in  the 
common  and  natural  sense,  but  also  that  they  were  not 
disciples. 


294  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

(4)  Harmony,  pages  70-71,  Sec.  54,  Math.  13:54-58; 
Mark  6:  1-5.  This  is  an  account  of  His  second  reception 
at  Nazareth,  His  own  city,  where  He  had  Hved  for  about 
30  years,  where  all  the  people  knew  the  entire  family. 
And  it  is  the  Nazarenes,  familiar  with  every  event  of 
the  family  history,  who  say,  "Is  not  this  the  carpenter, 
the  Son  of  Mary,  and  brother  of  James  and  Joseph  and 
Judas  and  Simon?  And  are  not  His  sisters  here  with 
us?"  Here  for  the  first  time  we  come  on  the  names  of 
his  four  brothers,  including  "James  and  Jude."  The 
people  of  this  village,  intimate  with  the  family  for  thirty 
years,  know  nothing  of  a  cousin  theory.  They  know 
nothing  of  Mary's  having  adopted  a  houseful  of  nephews 
and  nieces.  Neither  does  the  New  Testament.  Nothing 
but  the  pressing  need  to  save  a  theory  could  ever  have 
so  distorted  this  simple  straightforward  narrative  from 
its  obvious  meaning. 

(5)  Harmony,  page  102,  Sec.  j}^,  John  7:2-9.  We 
have  only  to  read  this  section,  describing  an  event  late  in 
His  history,  to  see  how  far  apart  in  spirit  is  our  Lord 
from  His  four  younger  half-brothers.  Indeed,  the  in- 
spired John  expressly  says,  "For  even  His  brothers  did 
not  believe  in  Him."  If  we  consider  that  this  incident 
occurred  after  the  long  Galilean  ministry  was  ended, 
and  that  .His  twelve  apostles  were  ordained  at  the  begin- 
ning of  this  ministry,  before  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount 
was  preached,  or  the  first  great  group  of  parables  were 
delivered  (see  Harmony,  page  44f),  we  see  how  strait- 
ened that  theory  must  be  to  make  His  unbelieving  broth- 
ers, always  so  far  distinguished  from  His  disciples,  iden- 
tical with  the  two  apostles,  James  the  son  of  Alpheus, 
and  James  and  Jude,  otherwise  called  Thaddeus  and 
Lebbeus.  There  is  no  evidence  whatever  that  any  of  His 
four  brothers  was  a  believer,  until  after  His  resurrec- 


INTRODUCTION  TO  JUDE  295 

tion,  and  usually  their  conversion  is  attributed  to  His 
appearances  after  His  resurrection  (see  I  Cor.  15:7: 
"He  appeared  to  James").  We  now  take  up  Acts  instead 
of  the  Harmony. 

(6)  Acts  1 :  13-14,  telling  what  followed  His  ascension 
forty  days  after  His  resurrection,  gives  by  name  all  the 
twelve  apostles,  closing  thus:  "These  all  [referring  to 
the  apostles  just  named]  with  one  accord  continued  stead- 
fastly in  prayer,  with  the  women,  and  Mary,  the  mother 
of  Jesus,  and  with  His  brethren."  Here  again  they  are 
expressly  distinguished  from  the  twelve  apostles,  though 
now  believers,  and  who  were  ten  days  later,  with  the 
apostles,  baptized  in  the  Holy  Spirit. 

(7)  I  Cor.  9:  5.  Years  later  Paul  referred  to  them  as 
married  men,  but  again  distinguished  them  from  the 
twelve  apostles,  also  married  men.  No  man,  with  un- 
prejudiced mind,  can  read  these  seven  scriptures,  in  their 
natural  context,  and  observing  fair  principles  of  gram- 
matical construction  and  interpretation,  and  avoid  these 
conclusions :  That  Joseph  and  Mary,  after  the  birth  of 
Jesus,  lived  together  as  any  other  man  and  wife;  that 
there  were  born  to  them  sons  and  daughters ;  that  after 
the  death  of  Joseph,  Jesus  was  head  of  the  house,  the 
mother  and  younger  children  following  Him;  that  none 
of  these  younger  brothers  were  converted  until  after  His 
resurrection ;  that  from  their  conversion,  however,  all 
these  brothers  were  faithful  Christians;  that  two  of 
them  became  authors  of  New  Testament  letters,  and 
James  early  became  pastor  of  the  Jerusalem  church,  and 
was  held  in  high  esteem ;  that  in  the  nature  of  the  case, 
none  of  them  were  of  the  twelve  apostles  to  the  circum- 
cision ;  that  there  is  no  evidence  at  all  that  Joseph  was 
a  widower  with  a  large  family  of  sons  and  daughters. 

(8)  As  the  final  scriptural  argument,  I  now  submit  the 


296  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

four  lists  of  the  twelve  apostles  to  the  circumcision,  which 
I  ask  the  reader  to  examine  carefully  in  both  the  Greek 
and  the  English.  These  lists  appear  at  Matthew  lo :  2-4 ; 
Mark  3 :  14-19 ;  Luke  6 :  13-16 ;  Acts  1:13.  Neither  from 
these  lists  nor  from  any  other  passage  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment can  it  be  proved  that  there  was  among  the  twelve 
a  pair  of  brothers  named  "J^"^6S  and  Jude."  On  the 
contrary,  the  preponderance  of  the  evidence  is  decidedly 
the  other  way.  It  is  clear  from  the  lists  and  other  scrip- 
tures that  Simon,  Peter  and  Andrew  were  brothers,  sons 
of  Jonah  or  John,  and  that  James  and  John,  sons  of 
Zebedee,  were  brothers,  but  there  the  proof  stops  on 
the  pairs  of  brothers.  To  save  time,  it  is  conceded  that 
the  "Thaddeus"  of  Mark's  and  Matthew's  list  is  the 
same  with  the  first  "J^de"  of  Luke's  list.  The  "Leb- 
beus"  given  in  some  of  the  manuscripts  of  Matthew  and 
Mark  is  only  a  marginal  explanation  of  Thaddeus,  both 
being  terms  of  endearmment,  which  might  well  be  applied 
to  Jude,  the  real  name. 

Neither  Matthew  nor  Mark  make  Thaddeus  a  brother 
of  James,  the  son  of  Alpheus,  which  is  the  more  remark- 
able in  Matthew's  case,  since  he  so  particularly  notes 
that  Simon  and  Andrew  are  brothers,  and  James  and 
John,  son  of  Zebedee,  are  brothers.  In  neither  of  Luke's 
lists  are  James,  the  son  of  Alpheus,  and  Jude  paired; 
Simon,  the  zealot,  in  both  lists,  pairs  with  James,  the  son 
of  Alpheus.  Luke's  list  alone  gives  the  name  of  Jude, 
and  in  neither  list  is  the  word  "brother"  used.  In  his 
gospel  list,  where  the  construction  demands  the  accusa- 
tive case,  the  Greek  is  "Joudan  Jacobou,"  literally  "Jude 
of  James,"  or  "James'  Jude."  In  the  Acts  list,  nominative 
form,  it  is  "Joudas  Jacobou,"  meaning  as  before  "Jude 
of  James,"  or  "James'  Jude."  But  what  is  more  remark- 
able in  the  Acts  list,  we  have  an  exactly  similar  form, 


INTRODUCTION  TO  JUDE  297 

"Jacobos  Alphaiou,"  which  no  scholar  hesitates  to  ren- 
der "Jsimes  the  son  of  Alpheus."  Then  why  hesitate  to 
render  "Joudas  Jacobou,"  "Jude,  the  son  of  James?" 
This  would  not  mean  that  Jude  was  the  son  of  either 
James  in  the  apostoHc  Hst.  It  is  every  way  improbable 
that  there  were  a  father  and  son  among  the  apostles, 
but  merely  that  Jude's  father  was  named  James,  as 
John's  father  was  named  Zebedee,  and  Peter's  father 
named  Jonah,  or  John.  It  is  not  necessary  that  we  should 
know  that  James  was  Jude's  father  any  more  than  that 
John  was  Peter's  father.  Accordingly,  the  American 
Standard  Revision  in  both  of  Luke's  lists  says,  "Jude, 
the  son  of  James,"  as  we  find  in  the  text-book.  This 
rendering  is  not  merely  defensible,  but  is  the  better  gram- 
matical rendering  where  there  is  nothing  in  the  context 
or  elsewhere  in  the  New  Testament  that  supplies  the 
word  "brother." 

In  the  first  verse  of  the  letter  to  Jude,  we  have  "Joudas 
Adelphos  Jacobou,"  which,  of  course,  means  "Jude,  the 
brother  of  James."  The  "adelphos"  settles  it,  as  it  set- 
tles Andrew's  relation  to  Peter.  But  when  we  come  to 
prove  that  this  Jude,  brother  of  James,  is  identical  with 
the  Jude  in  Luke's  list  of  the  twelve  apostles,  then  we 
confront  the  Latin  proverb:  "Hie  labor,  hoc  opus  est." 
Certainly  the  Jude  of  this  letter  not  only  makes  no  such 
claim,  but  in  verses  17  and  18  teaches  the  contrary, 
clearly  distinguishing  himself  from  the  apostles.  Nor 
does  James,  his  brother,  make  such  claims  in  his  letter. 
The  whole  muddle  comes  from  a  strained  effort  to  sus- 
tain the  baseless  theory,  the  perpetual  virginity  of  Mary. 

To  all  these  scriptural  testimonies,  only  two  passages 
can  be  even  seemingly  opposed,  and  they  have  no  real 
force,  but  I  cite  them : 

First,  it  is  objected  that  if  Mary  had  sons  of  her  own, 


298  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Jesus  on  the  cross  would  not  have  commended  his  mother 
to  the  care  of  John,  the  son  of  Zebedee  (see  John  19 :  26- 
27).  The  reply  is  obvious,  (i)  Mary  and  her  sons  were 
very  poor.  The  family  had  always  been  poor.  Even 
when  Jesus,  forty  days  old,  was  presented  in  the  Temple 
as  a  first-born,  holy  unto  God,  the  family  could  offer  as 
a  sacrifice  only  a  pair  of  turtle  doves,  or  two  young 
pigeons,  the  minimum  offering  of  extreme  poverty.  He 
was  only  a  carpenter,  the  son  of  a  carpenter,  doing  com- 
mon, crude  work  for  a  pitiful  compensation.  Later  on, 
His  life-work  absorbed  His  time  and  labor  without  com- 
pensation, except  only  that  the  first  Ladies'  Aid  Society 
ministered  unto  Him  of  their  substance.  Jesus  says  of 
himself,  "The  foxes  have  holes,  and  the  birds  of  the 
air  have  nests,  but  the  Son  of  Man  hath  not  where  to  lay 
His  head."  But  John  was  well-to-do.  Jesus  wanted  his 
mother  to  have  a  settled  home.     Her  sons  had  nothing. 

Second,  at  this  time  her  sons  were  unbelievers,  and 
out  of  sympathy  with  Jesus  and  His  work.  The  Lord 
wanted  her  to  have  a  sympathetic  Christian  home  where 
Christian  influence  would  be  exerted  over  her  younger 
children.  The  provision  He  thus  made  accomplished  all 
the  objects  He  contemplated,  and  thus  justified  itself. 

As  far  as  history  throws  its  light  on  these  brothers 
of  our  Lord  and  their  descendants,  they  remained  ex- 
tremely poor.  Eusebius  preserves  an  illustration,  a  frag- 
ment of  Hegesippus.  The  story  goes  that  Domitian  was 
apprehensive  of  the  descendants  of  David.  The  grand- 
sons of  this  very  Jude  were  brought  before  him.  But 
when  he  saw  how  poor  they  were,  their  hands  horny 
with  hard  labor,  and  heard  their  explanation  that  the 
kingdom  of  our  Lord  was  spiritual,  he  dismissed  them 
in  contempt,  no  longer  fearing  a  rival  in  any  kingdom 
of  our  Lord. 


INTRODUCTION  TO  JUDE  299 

The  second  objection  is  based  on  Gal.  i :  19,  which 
says,  "I  tarried  with  Cephas  fifteen  days,  but  other  of 
the  apostles  saw  I  none,  save  James,  the  Lord's  brother." 
It  is  claimed  that  Paul  here  calls  James  an  apostle,  and 
impliedly  one  of  the  twelve. 

The  reply  is:  A  fair  rendering  of  the  Greek  is,  "Other 
of  the  apostles  saw  I  none,  but  only  James  the  Lord's 
brother."  Which  means,  I  saw  Peter  only  of  the  apos- 
tles, but  I  saw  James,  the  Lord's  brother.  Apart  from 
this,  a  number  were  called  apostles  in  the  etymological, 
but  not  official,  sense  of  the  word.  Jesus  himself  was 
called  an  apostle,  and  so  was  Barnabas.  In  the  same 
way,  Jesus  was  called  a  deacon,  and  was  one  etymo- 
logically,  though  not  officially. 

The  conclusion  of  the  author  is  that  the  writer  of 
this  letter  is  Jude,  a  younger  half-brother  of  our  Lord, 
a  son  of  Joseph  and  Mary,  and  a  full  brother  of  that 
James  who  wrote  the  New  Testament  letter  of  that  name 
and  was  pastor  of  the  church  at  Jerusalem,  and  whose 
martyrdom,  according  to  Josephus,  was  one  of  the  causes 
of  the  downfall  of  Jerusalem. 

Our  next  question  is.  To  whom  addressed?  The 
letter  itself  says,  "To  them  that  are  called  beloved  in 
God,  the  Father,  and  kept  for  Jesus  Christ,"  but  as  its 
argument  so  closely  follows  Peter's  letter,  which  was 
addressed  to  Christian  Jews  of  Asia  Minor,  and  as  both 
attack  certain  phases  of  the  Gnostic  philosophy  origi- 
nating and  prevailing  in  Proconsular  Asia,  we  may  safely 
infer  that  wavering  Christian  Jews  of  Asia  Minor  are 
addressed.  Jude's  own  statement  is  indefinite,  but  the 
whole  argument  is  Jewish. 

What  the  likeness  between  II  Peter  and  Jude?  Second 
Peter  is  very  much  like  Jude's  verses  4-16  in  the  follow- 
ing particulars : 


300  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

1.  Both  warn  against  heretics  who  are  denying  the 
Lord  that  bought  them,  II  Pet.  2:1;  Jude  4. 

2.  These  heretics,  in  both  cases,  turn  the  grace  of 
God  into  lasciviousness,  Jude  4  and  II.  Pet.  2 : 2. 

3.  They  crept  into  the  churches  privily,  and  worked 
privily,  II  Pet.  2:1;  Jude  44. 

4.  In  both  their  motive  is  covetousness,  Jude  11  and 
II  Pet.  2:3,  15. 

5.  In  both,  these  heretics  despise  government,  or  rail 
at  dignities,  II  Pet.  2:10;  Jude  8. 

6.  In  both,  they  employ  swelling  words  of  vanity, 
II  Pet.  2:18;  Jude  16. 

7.  In  both,  they  are  described  as  ignorant,  following 
neither  reason  nor  gospel,  but  are  like  the  brutes  in 
instincts  and  passions,  II  Pet.  2:12;  Jude  10. 

8.  In  both,  they  are  described  as  marring  the  Chris- 
tian feasts,  "spots  and  blemishes  revelling  in  their  deceiv- 
ings  while  they  feast  with  you."  II  Pet.  2: 13.  "Hidden 
rocks  in  your  love-feasts,  when  they  feast  with  you, 
shepherds  that  without  fear  feed  themselves,"  Jude  12. 

9.  In  both,  they  are  compared  to  Balaam,  II  Pet.  2:5; 
Jude  II. 

10.  In  Peter  (2:17)  they  are  "springs  without  water, 
and  mists  driven  by  storms,"  and  in  Jude,  "clouds  with- 
out water  carried  along  by  winds,"  verse  12. 

11.  Both  Peter  and  Jude  cite  three  historical  exam- 
ples to  show  the  certain  judgment  on  such  evil-doers, 
which  in  two  instances  are  the  same  in  both,  to-wit :  the 
punishment  of  sinning  angels,  and  the  destruction  of 
Sodom  and  Gomorrah. 

These  are  not  all  the  recemblances,  but  they  are  quite 
sufficient  to  show  that  whichever  was  the  later  copied 
much  from  the  other.  But  this  leads  to  the  question: 
Who  wrote  first?    In  the  absence  of  historical  proof  we 


INTRODUCTION  TO  JUDE  301 

have  only  internal  evidence  to  guide  our  conclusion.  As 
in  all  other  conclusions  dependent  on  internal  evidence 
alone,  anything  apprbaching  unanimity  is  impossible. 
Criticism  on  the  internal  evidence  is  not  a  science.  Men 
equally  disinterested  and  scholarly  reach  opposite  con- 
clusions. The  historical  evidence  of  two  competent  wit- 
nesses, if  we  had  them,  would  be  worth  more  than  the 
volumes  of  criticism  based  on  comparison  of  the  two 
letters. 

Canon  Farrar  is  infallibly  sure  that  Jude  wrote  first. 
The  author,  with  all  of  Farrar's  argument  before  him, 
and  the  arguments  of  even  greater  men  agreeing  with 
him,  reaches,  but  not  so  dogmatically,  the  opposite  con- 
clusion, viz.:  that  Peter  wrote  first.  In  his  judgment 
the  heresies  denounced  are  older  and  riper  when  Jude 
writes.  There  is  more  expansion  of  the  points  common 
to  both  in  Jude.  Peter  refers  to  fallen  angels ;  Jude 
does  the  same,  and  specifies  their  sin.  Peter  refers  to 
unfallen  angels  who  rail  not  at  dignities ;  so  does  Jude, 
and  adds  an  example.  Peter  cites  the  case  of  Balaam; 
so  does  Jude,  and  adds  the  case  of  Cain  and  Korah. 
Peter  refers  to  the  evil  of  the  presence  of  these  heretics 
at  the  Christian  feasts  and  describes  them  in  vivid  images. 
Jude  does  the  same  and  names  the  feasts  and  adds  to 
the  vivid  images. 

To  the  author,  it  seems  more  probable  that  Jude 
would  expand  the  teaching  of  an  apostle,  than  that  an 
apostle  would  depend  on  Jude  for  his  ideas  and  lines  of 
thought,  condensing  from  an  inferior.  In  verses  17,  18, 
Jude  seems  to  quote  from  II  Pet.  3 : 3.  This  quotation 
and  testimony  of  Peter's  apostolic  office  amount  to  a 
confession  of  Jude's  knowledge  of  II  Peter  and  depend- 
ence on  it,  proper  enough  in  his  case,  but  highly  improb- 
able if  reversed.    The  dependence  confessed  amounts  to 


302  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

a  defense  against  the  charge  of  outright  plagiarism. 
There  would  be  no  like  defense  for  Peter  if  he  wrote 
later  than  Jude.  He  nowhere  even  indirectly  acknowl- 
edges dependence  on  another.  If  Peter  wrote  later  than 
Jude,  he  is  convicted  of  plagiarism. 

While  Jude  derives  much  from  Peter,  and  seems  to 
confess  it,  the  dependence,  if  confessed,  is  not  slavish. 
He  not  only  contributes  new  matter  to  every  fact  or 
thought  he  copies,  but  manifests  both  individuality  and 
originality  in  his  use  of  the  matter  copied.  He  writes 
with  a  pen  of  fire  and  proves  himself  a  master  in 
rhetorical  images. 

The  reader  must  note  particularly  the  characteristic 
which  most  distinguishes  Jude  from  H  Peter,  to-wit: 
his  threes.  Not  only  his  three  historical  examples  agree- 
ing with  Peter  in  verses  5-7,  but  also  the  three  offences 
of  verse  8,  the  three  evil  examples  of  verse  11,  the  three 
characteristics  of  verse  19,  the  threefold  remedy  of 
verses  20-21,  and  the  threefold  discipline  in  verse  22. 

OUTLINE 

I.  The  author  and  his  greeting,  verses  1-2. 

II.  The  purpose  of  the  letter,  verse  3. 

III.  The  occasion  of  the  letter,  verse  4. 

IV.  The  three  historical  examples  to  prove  God's  pun- 
ishment of  heresy  and  rebellion,  verses  5-7. 

V.  The  three  offences  against  the  light  of  this  history 
committed  by  these  heretics,  which  make  them  unlike 
holy  angels,  and  like  unreasoning  brutes,  verses  8-10. 

VI.  Woe  denounced  on  them  for  following  the  ex- 
amples of  three  great  historic  sinners,  verse  11. 

VII.  The  evil  influence  of  their  presence  at  the  Chris- 
tian lovefeasts,  verses  12-13. 


INTRODUCTION  TO  JUDE  303 

VIII.  The  prophecy  of  Enoch  against  them,  verses 
14-16. 

IX.  Their  coming  foretold  by  the  apostles,  verses 
17-19. 

X.  A  threefold  preventive  against  becoming  like  them, 
verses  20-21. 

XL  A  threefold  treatment  of  discipline  prescribed, 
verses  22-23. 

XII.  Benediction,  verses  24-25. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  things  make  this  the  strangest  of  the  New  Testament 
books  ? 

2.  What  does  the  author  of  the  book  say  of  himself? 

3.  What  baseless  theory  heedlessly  complicates  the  question 
of  identifying  the  author? 

4.  What  two  classes  advocate  the  theory  and  what  the  grounds 
of  the  advocacy  in  each  case? 

5.  In  what  two  ways,  one  or  the  other,  do  Non-Romanists  in 
advocating  this  theory  account  for  the  brothers  and  sisters  of 
our   Lord   in   Matthew  9:55   and   Mark  6:3? 

6.  What  your  reply  to  the  first? 

7.  Which  of  the  two  advocated  by  the  Romanists,  and  why? 

8.  Cite  in  order,  the  eight  groups  of  passages,  with  the  argu- 
ment of  each,  disproving  the  theory. 

9.  Cite  and  reply  to  the  two  passages  seemingly  supporting 
the  theory. 

10.  What  the  points  of  likeness  to   II   Peter? 

11.  Who  the  later  writer  and  why? 

12.  What  one  characteristic  distinguishes  Jude  most  from  II 
Peter? 

13.  What  the  outline? 


XXV 

AN  EXPOSITION  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JUDE 
Scripture:    Jude  1-25. 

IN  the  introduction  to  this  letter  we  have  found 
the  author  to  be,  not  an  apostle,  as  we  see  from 
the  17th  verse  of  the  letter  itself,  but  to  be  Jude,  the 
brother  of  James,  a  younger  half-brother  of  our  Lord. 
And  from  its  general  agreement  in  subject  matter  with 
the  second  chapter  of  II  Peter,  and  its  evident  refer- 
ence to  the  Gnostic  philosophy  of  the  Lycus  Valley,  the 
probable  conclusion  was  reached  that  it  was  addressed 
to  Christian  Jews  of  Asia  Minor.  And  as  there  is  no 
evidence  in  the  Bible  or  out  of  it  that  this  Jude,  or  any 
of  the  younger  children  of  Joseph  and  Mary  ever  left 
the  Holy  Land,  it  was  concluded  that  the  letter  was 
written  from  Jerusalem,  and  that  it  was  written  before 
the  downfall  of  that  city.  Jerusalem  was  taken  by  Titus 
in  A.  D.  70,  and  this  book  was  written  probably  A.  D. 
68.  Indeed,  the  author  regards  the  book  of  Jude  as  the 
latest  book  of  New  Testament  literature,  except  the 
writings  of  John — his  three  letters,  his  gospel  and  Rev- 
elations, which  were  all  much  later  than  other  N.  T. 
books. 

The  occasion  and  purpose  of  this  letter,  appear  in 
the  3rd  and  4th  verses:  "Beloved,  while  I  was  giving 
all  diligence  to  write  unto  you  of  our  common  salva- 
tion, I  was  constrained  to  write  unto  you,  exhorting 
you  to  contend  earnestly  for  the  faith  which  was  once 

304 


THE  BOOK  OF  JUDE  305 

for  all  delivered  unto  the  saints,  for  there  are  certain 
men  crept  in  privily,  even  they  who  were  of  old  written 
of  beforehand  unto  this  condemnation,  ungodly  men, 
turning  the  grace  of  our  God  into  lasciviousness,  and 
denying  our  only  Master  and  Lord,  Jesus  Christ." 

There  are  both  the  occasion  and  purpose  of  the  letter. 
We  distinguish  between  the  occasion  and  the  purpose 
in  this  way :  Certain  men,  whose  heresies  come  under 
two  heads — their  denial  of  Jesus  Christ  and  their  turn- 
ing of  the  grace  of  God  unto  lasciviousness,  occasioned 
the  letter.  The  purpose  of  the  letter  is  an  earnest  exhor- 
tation to  contend  for  the  faith  which  was  once  for  all 
delivered  unto  the  saints. 

We  see  from  these  two  verses  that  Jude  was  already 
contemplating  writing  concerning  the  common  salvation, 
but  before  he  had  put  that  general  purpose  into  execution, 
the  occasion  arose  that  called  upon  him  to  write  on  a 
specific  part  of  that  common  salvation. 

Look  at  certain  words  in  these  verses :  "The  common 
salvation."  Just  exactly  what  does  he  mean  by  that? 
The  thought  is  that  the  salvation  of  the  gospel  is  not 
local,  provincial,  or  divergent,  but  like  its  universal 
gospel  applies  alike  to  all  its  subjects  everywhere,  whether 
in  Judea,  or  in  the  lands  of  the  dispersion,  and  brings 
them  into  a  common  brotherhood.  Jude's  expression, 
"our  common  salvation,"  is  in  line  with  Paul's  expression, 
in  his  letter  to  Titus — "our  common  faith."  Common 
salvation ; — common  faith.  That  is,  faith  which  lays 
hold  on  salvation  is  as  common  as  the  salvation  itself. 
Saving  faith  is  the  same  in  Judea,  in  Samaria,  and 
in  the  utmost  parts  of  the  earth.  That  is  what  is  meant 
by  common  salvation  and  by  common  faith.  He  says 
that  the  purpose  of  his  book  is  to  urge  that  they  shall 
contend  earnestly  for  the  faith  which  was  once  for  all 


306  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

delivered  to  the  saints,  which  is  strictly  in  line  with  the 
preceding  thought  about  the  common  salvation.  As  to 
be  saved  means  the  same  thing  all  over  the  world,  and 
as  faith  which  lays  hold  of  that  salvation  is  the  same 
all  over  the  world,  so  the  faith,  or  the  body  of  truth 
proclaimed  by  our  Lord  himself,  and  which  was  com- 
mitted to  His  apostles  as  a  deposit  of  truth,  and  which 
they  in  turn  committed  to  the  churches,  is  the  same 
everywhere  and  always.  It  simply  means  that  this  body 
of  doctrine  so  delivered,  was  all-sufficient  for  all  time 
to  come  without  addition  or  subtraction. 

The  question  arises,  where  else  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment is  this  idea  of  "the  faith"  as  referring  to  the  body 
or  system  of  truth  taught?  In  Paul's  letter  to  Timothy 
the  same  expression  is  used — the  faith  as  standing  op- 
posed to  Gnosticism,  and  like  Paul  Jude  puts  over  against 
the  teaching  of  the  Gnostics  the  faith,  the  sacred  deposit 
of  truth.  This  faith,  or  the  body  of  truth,  he  says, 
was  delivered.  It  was  not  originated  by  man — it  was 
delivered.  Paul  says,  "I  have  delivered  unto  you  that 
which  I  also  received,"  and  then  he  begins  to  give  his 
summary.  First,  how  that  Christ  died  for  our  sins  ac- 
cording to  the  scriptures ;  second,  that  He  was  buried ; 
third,  that  He  rose  again  the  third  day ;  fourth,  that 
He  was  recognized  as  risen.  And  we  find  in  Paul's 
letters  quite  a  number  of  the  summaries  of  the  faith 
once  for  all  delivered  to  the  saints. 

In  his  gospel,  Luke  refers  to  the  same  thought.  He 
was  anxious  for  Theophilus  to  know  of  "the  cer- 
tainty of  the  things  which  are  commonly  believed  among 
us."  One  of  the  best  books  of  modern  times  on  this 
subject  is  "Faith  and  The  Faith,"  by  T.  T.  Eaton.  He 
distinguished  rightly  between  faith  as  an  act  of  the  man 
taking  hold  of  salvation,  and  THE  faith,  or  body  of  truth 


THE  BOOK  OF  JUDE  307 

that  was  delivered.  Every  preacher  ought  to  carefully 
read  Dr.  Eaton's  little  book.  It  is  a  fine  discussion. 
What  a  great  pity  that  all  who  claim  to  be  Baptists  in 
the  United  States  do  not  read  that  little  book. 

I  must  call  attention  just  here  to  the  importance  of 
this  treble  idea.  Salvation  is  common ;  it  is  not  different 
in  England  from  what  it  is  in  France,  nor  in  Egypt 
from  what  it  is  in  Samaria,  nor  in  any  one  part  of  the 
earth  from  what  it  is  in  any  other  part.  In  every  part  of 
the  earth  salvation  is  the  same. 

Second,  the  faith  which  takes  hold  of  salvation,  or 
the  exercise  of  faith,  is  the  same  thing.  A  man  does 
not  become  a  Christian  one  way  in  Germany,  and 
another  way  in  France.  Whenever  and  wherever  a 
man  is  saved,  there  and  then  it  is  a  common  salvation,  a 
common  faith,  "like  precious  faith." 

So  the  things  preached  in  order  to  salvation  are  the 
same.  The  things  to  be  preached,  without  any  addition, 
without  any  subtraction,  in  their  fullness  or  sufficiency, 
are  the  same.  Whenever  a  man  claims  that  he  has 
a  new  truth  to  preach,  we  may  know  it  is  false.  The 
truth  was  delivered  once  and  for  all  to  the  saints,  and 
if  I  never  make  any  other  impression  than  the  impression 
concerning  the  common  salvation  and  the  common  faith 
that  lays  hold  of  salvation,  the  common  system  of  truth 
that  is  preached  in  order  to  salvation,  that  is  a  big 
lesson.  I  am  hoping  and  praying  continually  that  there 
shall  never  go  out  from  our  Seminary  any  heretic  on 
any  one  of  these  three  points. 

Here  a  question  arises:  Would  this  mean  that  no 
new  light  is  to  break  out  of  God's  word?  It  does  not 
mean  that  at  all.  That  old  Puritan  who  entered  the 
emigrant  ship  in  Holland  to  come  to  the  United  States, 
struck   fire   from   the   rock   when   he   said:   "Brethren, 


308  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

there  is  yet  more  light  to  break  out  of  God's  word." 
The  light  is  there;  it  simply  means  that  we  have  not 
yet  seen  all  the  light  that  is  in  there.  It  is  not  a  new 
light,  but  it  is  newly  discovered  by  the  student.  When 
I  say,  then,  that  a  new  truth  is  a  falsehood,  I  do  not 
mean  that  a  new  interpretation  or  perception  of  the  truth 
is  necessarily  a  falsehood.  A  thousand  times  since  I 
began  the  study  of  the  Bible  new  light  has  broken  out 
of  the  gospel  to  me.  We  may  let  down  our  buckets 
into  the  well  of  salvation  ten  thousand  times,  and  so 
may  ten  thousand  people  after  we  are  gone,  and  yet 
every  man  may  draw  up  fresh  water  from  the  inexhaus- 
tible springs  of  joy  in  the  word  of  God.  But  we  do  not 
want  any  more  additions,  nor  to  retire  any  part  as 
obsolete. 

We  recur  to  the  occasion  of  Jude's  letter.  Those  men 
in  the  Lycus  Valley  (it  really  came  from  one  man,  but 
it  spread  until  it  threatened  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ 
more  than  any  other  error  that  has  ever  been  preached 
in  the  world,  and  it  is  yet  alive),  commenced  first  by 
trying  to  account  for  the  universe,  and  in  accounting 
for  the  universe,  they  discounted  Christ's  part  in  the 
universe.  They  took  the  position  that  God  would  not 
concern  himself  with  such  a  thing  as  matter,  and  there- 
fore He  must  shade  himself  down  to  eons,  low  enough 
to  touch  matter,  tliat  Jesus  was  one  of  the  lowest  emana- 
tions from  God.  This  necessarily  reflected  upon  Jesus 
Christ,  as  the  Creator  of  the  world,  and  hence  all  the 
later  letters  of  the  Bible  bear  on  the  person  of  Christ, 
and  on  the  offices  of  Christ  in  defense  against  this 
heresy. 

They  taught  that  sin  resided  in  matter,  that  the  soul 
or  spirit  could  not  sin,  that  the  escape  of  the  soul  from 
the  body  at  death,  or  the  quickening  of  the  soul  in  re- 


THE  BOOK  OF  JUDE  309 

generation  was  the  resurrection.  There  was  no  salva- 
tion for  the  body,  and  inasmuch  as  the  body  returned 
to  nothingness  when  the  soul  was  raised  from  it,  there- 
fore it  was  immaterial  what  you  did  in  the  body.  Hence 
the  turning  of  the  grace  of  God  into  lasciviousness.  It 
was  a  teaching  of  impurity,  and  the  most  beastly,  brut- 
ish kind  that  the  world  has  ever  known. 

The  question  arises:  How  could  such  men  get  into 
the  church?  And  Jude  answers:  "Certain  men  crept 
in  privily."  They  did  not  unmask  themselves  when  they 
joined  the  church.  They  joined  the  church,  but  they 
were  not  converted  men,  and  they  kept  secret  their  real 
belief.  They  were  the  worst  of  all  hypocrites,  and  hav- 
ing crept  in  privily,  as  Peter  says,  they  taught  privily. 
The  gospel  is  daylight  work;  we  preach  it  on  the  house 
tops.  These  people  who  sneaked  into  the  church,  sneaked 
in  their  teaching.  They  would  not  dare  come  up  before 
a  public  congregation  and  teach  that  lust,  adultery, 
disregard  of  woman's  honor,  and  the  sanctity  of  the 
family  were  harmless  matters.  They  would  not  dare 
to  teach  that  openly,  but  they  would  teach  it  privily. 

The  next  thing  in  this  heresy  was  its  motive.  Its 
motive  was  gain.  Peter  says  they  followed  the  way 
of  Balaam,  and  Jude  repeats  that  statement,  "for  the 
wages  of  unrighteousness."  How  could  they  make  a 
gain  out  of  such  teachings?  They  could  not  do  it  pub- 
licly; men  would  not  pay  money  for  that  sort  of  public 
instruction.  They  would  go  around  to  people  privily 
and  say,  "Here,  it  is  respectable  for  you  to  belong  to 
the  church;  we  do  not  want  you  to  quit.  But  there  is 
no  need  for  you  to  attend  its  services.  You  may  forsake 
the  assemblies,  but  you  should  belong  to  a  special  inner 
class  who  know  more  than  the  uncultured  masses.  Let 
the  plowmen  and  slaves,  the  common  people,  respect  all 


310  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

these  details,  but  advanced  people  do  not  need  any 
such  doctrine  as  that.  Pay  us  so  much,  and  we  will 
initiate  you  secretly."  So  there  would  be  separation 
of  classes  in  the  church,  but  not  withdrawals — separations 
in  the  body  of  the  church,  one  class  distinguished  from 
another  class. 

When  Jude  understood  this  he  saw  that  the  only 
remedy  was  to  "contend  earnestly  for  the  faith,  which 
was  once  for  all  delivered  to  the  saints."  "You  must  not 
let  these  people  sidetrack  you  from  the  person  and 
offices  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  You  must  not  let 
them  creep  into  your  home ;  you  must  hold  on  to  the 
truth  of  God."  Like  Peter,  he  cites  three  historical 
examples  to  show  that  no  matter  how  secretly  a  man 
may  work,  God  brings  sure  and  condign  punishment  upon 
the  wicked.  Who  teaches  a  heresy  does  a  moral  wrong. 
"I  put  you  in  remembrance  that  ye  know  these  things, 
that  the  Lord,  having  saved  a  people  out  of  the  land  of 
Egypt,  afterwards  destroyed  them  that  believed  not." 
He  had  saved  that  nation,  and  yet  out  of  the  great 
body  of  men  able  to  bear  arms,  600,000  that  left  Egypt, 
only  two  of  them  got  to  the  promised  land.  Why? 
God  destroyed  those  that  believed  not.  They  were  will- 
ing enough  to  observe  the  ritual  of  religion,  willing 
enough  to  ofifer  the  sacrifices,  but  were  not  willing  to 
live  the  religion.  They  did  not  want  God  to  rule  in 
the  heart,  the  imagination,  in  the  life,  and  hence  they 
were  unbelievers,  and  every  one  of  them  died  under 
the  judgment  of  God.  When  the  providence  of  God 
executes  a  half-million  of  men  for  violation  of  His  law, 
the  violation  coming  through  their  unbelieving,  then  these 
Gnostic  teachers  certainly  may  not  expect  to  escape. 

The  next  case  that  he  cites  is  this:  "And  the  angels 
that  kept  not  their  own  principality,  but  left  their  proper 


THE  BOOK  OF  JUDE  311 

habitation,  He  hath  kept  in  everlasting  bonds  under 
darkness  unto  the  judgment  of  the  great  day."  Here 
Jude  tells  us  of  the  fall  of  the  angels  and  the  question 
naturally  comes  up :  How  many  falls  of  the  angels  have 
there  been?  Does  this  refer  to  the  time  when  Satan, 
through  pride,  fell,  and  certain  of  the  angels  fol- 
lowed him,  and  are  called  his  angels  from  that  time, 
or  his  demons?  Or  has  there  been  since  that  time 
two  other  falls  of  the  angels  besides  that?  There  certain- 
ly would  be  a  second  fall  if  that  variant  Septuagint 
rendering  is  true,  that  angels  cohabitating  with  women 
brought  about  the  flood.  That  would  be  a  second  fall. 
Then  if  Nephelim  means  angels  there  was  a  third  fall, 
after  the  flood.  Is  this  true?  Jude  refers  to  only  one  fall 
of  the  angels.  He  says  "they  left  their  proper  habitation, 
kept  not  their  own  principalities."  In  other  words,  there 
is  an  heirarchy  among  the  angels.  They  had  their  place 
in  heaven,  each  one  or  each  class  having  its  principality 
and  powers.  Certain  angels  did  not  keep  their  princi- 
pality, but  left  their  proper  habitation  and  followed 
the  devil  in  that  great  rebellion.  That  is  every  thing 
that  Jude  says  about  the  angels.  We  would  be  curious 
to  know  how  then,  some  contend  that  Jude  charges  that 
Genesis  6:4  teaches  the  cohabitation  of  angels  with 
women,  as  the  occasion  of  their  fall.  We  find  the  basis 
of  their  contention  in  the  7th  verse:  "Even  as  Sodom 
and  Gomorrah,  and  the  cities  about  them,  having  in 
like  manner  with  these  *****  *."  Look  at  that 
word,  "these."  There  is  our  word — what  is  its  ante- 
cedent? The  radical  higher  critics  say  the  antecedent 
is  "angels"  in  the  preceding  verse,  and  they  read  it  this 
way:  "Even  as  Sodom  and  Gomorrah,  and  the  cities 
about  having  in  like  manner  with  these  angels  given 
themselves  over  to  fornication  and  gone  after  strange 


312  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

flesh."  "Toutois,"  that  Greek  pronoun,  what  is  its  ante- 
cedent? Many  commentators  think  that  the  antecedent 
of  "these"  is  the  angels  that  kept  not  their  first  estate, 
and  therefore  that  Jude  teaches  that  the  angels  committed 
the  same  offense  that  is  attributed  to  Sodom  and  Gomor- 
rah. And  they  cite  some  manuscript  of  the  Septuagint 
which  translates  "sons  of  God"  in  Gen.  6:1-4  by  "angels." 
In  reply  I  give  my  discussion  on  this  subject.  There 
I  raise  the  question:  What  caused  the  deluge?  The 
discussion  cites  two  evil  theories  of  the  cause  of  the 
deluge.  The  first  evil  theory  answers  that  the  Adamites, 
or  the  white  race,  were  guilty  of  miscegenation  with 
negroes,  the  pre-Adamite  race.  In  favor  of  that  evil 
theory,  there  is  a  book  circulating  all  over  Texas.  I 
knew  personally  the  writer.  But  with  that  first  theory 
we  have  nothing  to  do  now.  The  second  evil  theory 
gives  as  the  cause  of  the  deluge  miscegenation  between 
angels  and  women.  According  to  this  theory  the  sons 
of  God,  angels,  married  the  daughters  of  men  because 
they  were  fair,  and  the  scriptural  arguments  on  which 
that  theory  rests  are  these :  First,  the  angels  in  the  Bible 
are  often  called  the  sons  of  God.  Second,  some  manu- 
scripts of  the  Septuagint  have  angels  in  the  context  of 
Genesis  6  '.4,  and  instead  of  reading  "the  sons  of  God 
took  to  themselves  wives  of  the  daughters  of  men  because 
they  were  fair,"  read :  "the  angels  of  God,"  etc.  Just 
here  I  call  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  Septuagint  ver- 
sion was  not  made — the  Genesis  part  of  it — until  about 
200  years  before  Christ,  long  after  the  Old  Testament 
revelations  had  ceased,  and  the  Jews  had  come  in  contact 
with  heathen  nations  where  old  legends  were  full  of 
examples  of  cohabitation  between  men  and  goddesses,  and 
gods  and  women,  and  that  is  where  the  idea  originated — 
it  came  from  the  heathen. 


THE  BOOK  OF  JUDE  313 

Their  second  argument  claims  that  the  6th  and  7th 
verses  of  Jude  show  that  the  sin  of  the  angels  was 
giving  themselves  over  to  strange  flesh.  That  the  mon- 
strous men,  the  Nephelim,  of  Genesis  6:4  were  angels. 
The  monstrous  character  of  the  offspring  from  this 
unnatural  cohabitation  is  cited  in  support  of  the  theory. 
See  the  latter  clause  of  Gen,  6 14,  and  also  a  recent  work 
of  fiction,  "Man  or  Seraph."  My  reply  to  that,  is  as 
follows : 

1.  It  is  conceded  that  sometimes  in  the  scriptures 
angels  are  called  the  "sons  of  God,"  but  never  in  Genesis. 

2.  The  rendering,  "angels,"  instead  of  "sons  of  God" 
in  some  Septuagint  manuscripts  is  not  a  translation  of 
the  Hebrew,  but  an  Alexandrian  interpretation  sub- 
stituted for  the  original. 

3.  The  whole  argument  in  Jude  is  based  upon  the 
assumption  that  the  pronoun,  "these,"  in  verse  7  has 
for  its  antecedent  the  noun,  "angels,"  in  verse  6,  though 
a  nearer  antecedent  may  be  found  in  verse  7,  namely, 
"Sodom  and  Gomorrah."  With  this  nearer  antecedent, 
Jude  7  would  read:  "Even  as  Sodom  and  Gomorrah, 
and  the  cities  about  them,  with  these,"  i.  e.,  with  Sodom 
and  Gomorrah,  not  with  the  angels.  Moreover,  the 
offense  in  Jude  7  is  not  the  o^'  se  in  Gen.  6:2.  The 
latter  is  marriage — legal  marriage. 

4.  "Nephilim,"  or  "giants,"  neither  here  nor  in  Num- 
bers 13 :33  means  "angels."  This  would  be  to  have 
another  offense  of  the  angels  after  the  flood. 

5.  The  offspring  of  the  ill  assorted  marriage  in  Genesis 
6:4  are  not  monsters  in  the  sense  of  prodigies  resulting 
from  cross  of  species,  but  "mighty  men,"  men  of  renown. 

6.  "Sons  of  God"  means  the  Sethites,  or  Christians, 
men  indeed  by  natural  generation,  but  sons  of  God  by 
regeneration.      In    Gen.   4:26,    directly    connected    with 


314  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

this  scripture,  we  have  the  origin  of  the  name:  "Then 
began  men  to  be  called  by  the  name  of  the  Lord."  This 
designation  of  Christians  is  common  in  both  Testaments. 
I  cite  particularly  Psalms  82 :6-7,  where  we  have  pre- 
cisely the  same  contrast  between  the  regenerate  and  the 
unregenerate  as  in  the  text  here.  "All  of  you  are  sons 
of  the  Most  High.    Nevertheless,  ye  shall  die  like  men." 

7.  The  inviolable  law  of  reproduction  within  the  limits 
of  species — "after  their  kind" — forbids  unnatural  inter- 
pretation of  this  second  theory. 

8.  According  to  our  Lord  Himself  the  angels  are  sex- 
less, without  human  passion,  neither  marrying  nor  giving 
in  marriage  (Luke  20:35). 

"Even  as  Sodom  and  Gomorrah,  and  the  cities  about 
them,  having  in  like  manner  with  these,"  that  is,  Sodom 
and  Gomorrah,  There  were  three  other  cities — at  least 
three  of  them  are  named  in  the  Bible.  Once  when  I 
took  this  position  my  critic  said,  "But  you  see,  the  gender 
of  'toutois'  does  not  agree  with  Sodom  and  Gomorrah. 
Angels  are  masculine — so  is  'toutois.'  Sodom  and  Go- 
morrah are  neuter.  They  cannot  agree."  My  reply 
was  "toutois,"  dative  plural  of  "toutos,"  is  either  mascu- 
line or  neuter.  So  the  objection  fails.  Why  should 
I  run  over  a  nearby  antecedent,  and  hook  it  on  to  one 
in  the  preceding  verse?  I  do  not  expect  radical  critics 
to  accept  my  judgment  on  the  antecedent  of  "toutois," 
but  I  stand  on  it.  In  the  case  of  two  possible  antecedents, 
both  grammatically  possible,  I  select  the  nearer  one,  which 
harmonizes  all  the  Bible  teaching,  rather  than  the  more 
distant  one  which  contradicts  the  whole  trend  of  Bible 
teaching.  The  scripture  must  be  interpreted  in  harmony 
with  itself  where  possible.  That  nearer  and  better  antece- 
dent does  harmonize  with  all  other  scriptures.  Moreover, 
Jude  has  already  specified  the  sin  of  the  fallen  angels  and 


THE  BOOK  OF  JUDE  316 

has  nothing  more  to  say  about  them.  Their  sin  was 
"they  kept  not  their  own  principality,  but  left  their 
proper  habitation."  There  is  no  hint  of  "cohabitation 
with  women." 

The  Bible  knows  nothing  of  several  falls  of  the  angels, 
but  only  one.  We  must  do  one  of  two  things :  Either 
reject  this  theory  which  makes  Jude  teach  the  cohabi- 
tation of  angels  with  women,  or  reject  the  inspiration 
of  the  book.    Both  cannot  stand. 

Jude's  third  historical  example  is  the  doom  of  Sodom 
and  Gomorrah,  on  account  of  unnatural  sins.  They 
are  set  forth  as  an  example  of  eternal  fire,  that  is,  not 
eternal  fire,  but  a  shadow  looking  to  or  presaging  eternal 
fire,  as  does  the  valley  of  Tophet  suggest,  in  a  figure, 
eternal  fire.  Jesus  says  it  will  be  more  tolerable  for 
Sodom  and  Gomorrah  in  the  judgment  than  for  the  cities 
which  heard  and  rejected  Him,  indicating  that  the  pun- 
ishment passed  upon  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  was  not  the 
worst  punishment  man  could  receive. 

In  the  8th  verse,  "Yet  in  like  manner  these,"  we  come 
to  that  pronoun  again.  What  "these"  is  this?  It  is 
the  teachers  of  evil  in  verse  4  who  turn  the  grace  of 
God  into  lasciviousness.  "These  in  their  dreaming  defile 
the  flesh,  and  set  at  naught  dominion,  and  rail  at  dig- 
nities." Three  things — defile  the  flesh,  set  at  naught 
government,  rail  at  dignities. 

We  now  come  to  another  strange  thing  in  Jude.  It 
is  alleged  that  the  9th  verse  teaches  that  Jude  quotes 
from  an  apocryphal  book  called  "The  Assumption  of 
Moses."  One  of  the  fathers  held  that  Jude  got  this 
idea  of  the  contention  of  Michael  and  the  devil  from 
"The  Assumption  of  Moses."  The  book  is  not  extant 
now — nobody  living  now  has  ever  seen  a  copy  of  it, 
but  there  are  some  allusions  in  writers  after  apostolic 


316  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

days  to  such  a  book.  These  vague  allusions  accredit 
this  apocryphal  book  as  teaching  that  Moses  did  not 
die  as  other  men  die,  or  at  least  was  not  allowed  to 
see  corruption ;  that  his  body  without  corruption  was 
taken  up  to  heaven  like  Elijah's  body.  That  is  the 
alleged  assumption  of  Moses  which  is  exactly  what 
some  Romanists  teach  about  the  Virgin  Mary.  They 
teach  that  Mary  never  died,  that  she  never  saw  cor- 
ruption, and  that  her  body  was  glorified  and  taken  up 
into  heaven.  "The  Assumption  of  Mary"  means  just 
that.  It  is  one  of  their  Romanist  doctrines.  But  the 
Bible  says  nothing  about  either  assumption  except  to 
flatly  contradict  both  in  its  general  teachings. 

But  "Michael,  the  Archangel,"  who  was  he?  The 
name  appears  first  in  Daniel  10:21  and  12:1  where  he 
is  called  the  prince  or  guardian  angel  of  the  Jewish 
nation.  Archangel  means  chief  or  captain  of  the  angels. 
The  name  reappears  in  the  book  of  Revelation,  12:7-9, 
where  as  leader  of  the  unfallen  angels  he  wars  with  and 
conquers  Satan  and  his  angels.  In  a  previous  discussion 
I  have  called  your  attention  to  this  distinction  between 
Michael  and  Gabriel — whenever  there  is  a  fight  on  hand, 
Michael  is  sent ;  whenever  it  is  a  mission  of  mercy, 
Gabriel  is  sent.  Michael  is  the  fighter.  He  is  the 
leader,  the  archangel,  the  chief  angel. 

Two  questions  naturally  arise:  What  was  the  diffi- 
culty between  Michael  and  the  devil  about  the  body 
of  Moses,  and  how  did  Jude  know  about  it?  For  there 
is  no  reference  in  the  Old  Testament  to  a  fight  between 
Michael  and  the  devil  about  the  body  of  Moses. 

Taking  the  second  question  first,  to-wit:  In  the  ab- 
sence of  O.  T.  light,  from  what  source  came  Jude's 
information?  A  large  class  of  commentators  refuse  to 
consider  any   source  of  information  but   some  Jewish 


THE   BOOK  OF  JUDE  317 

tradition.     Hinc  illae  lachryma-e:     Hence   their   trouble 
in  two  directions : 

1.  Which  one  of  the  many  Jewish  traditions?  For 
there  are  many  prior  to  the  late  apocryphal  book, 
called  "The  Assumption  of  Moses,"  some  of  them 
very  silly,  some  beautiful  in  thought. 

2.  Where  does  this  reliance  on  and  endorsement  of 
variant  and  uninspired  tradition  land  Jude? 

My  answer  is,  Jude's  information  came  from  inspira- 
tion— the  same  source  from  which  many  other  N.  T. 
references  come,  not  given  in  O.  T.  For  example,  Paul's 
giving  the  names,  Jannes  and  Jambres,  to  the  Egyptian 
priests  who  opposed  Moses  (H  Tim.  3:8).  Does  in- 
spiration fall  unless  buttressed  by  tradition  ?  Why  should 
I  assume  the  unnecessary  burden  of  verifying  scripture  by 
Jewish  legend?  One  of  the  great  offices  of  inspiration 
is  to  guide  in  the  selection  of  material  and  to  bring 
to  remembrance. 

It  is  a  characteristic  of  inspiration  that  it  brings  to 
mind  unrecorded  things  of  the  past.  Jesus  speaks  of 
unrecorded  things;  Stephen  does  the  same.  So  does 
Paul.    Why  not  Jude? 

This  leaves  unanswered  the  other  question,  What 
the  contention  between  Michael  and  the  devil  about  the 
body  of  Moses  ?  I  don't  know.  In  the  absence  of  Scrip- 
tural light  on  it  I  cannot  say.  There  was  a  contention 
we  know,  just  what  we  may  modestly  suggest  as  possible 
or  even  probable,  but  may  not  affirm. 

God  Himself,  according  to  the  record,  buried  Moses 
when  he  died  and  no  man  knoweth  just  where  the 
place  of  burial.  For  some  wise  purpose,  not  disclosed, 
God  kept  that  place  of  sepulture  hidden  from  men.  It 
possibly  may  have  been  his  purpose  to  forestall  Jewish 
pilgrimages  to  the  place  which  might  result  in  deifying 


318  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Moses.  There  is  a  tendency  to  worship  relics.  These 
Jews  did  worship  the  brazen  serpent  until  Hezekiah 
broke  it  to  pieces  saying,  "Nehushtan,"  i.  e.  "It  is  only 
a  piece  of  brass."  Romanists  today  worship  relics. 
Europe  went  crazy  to  rescue  the  empty  tomb  of  Jesus. 
Knowing  this  superstitious  trend  in  man,  and  desiring 
to  minister  to  it,  Satan  may  have  attempted  to  locate 
the  buried  body  of  Moses  and  was  successfully  resisted 
by  Michael,  the  guardian  angel  of  the  Jewish  people. 

Or,  as  Moses  had  sinned,  and  died,  Satan  who  has 
the  power  of  death,  may  have  claimed  the  death-stricken 
body  as  his,  which  Michael  resisted,  because  it  was 
the  body  of  a  redeemed  man,  committed  to  him  till 
God  would  raise  and  glorify  it.  He  would  put  his 
brand  on  all  the  bodies  of  the  saints  except  for  the 
fact  that  "they  sleep  in  Jesus"  and  are  angel-guarded 
until  the  resurrection.  I  repeat :  Moses  sinned ;  Moses 
as  a  sinner  died.  The  devil  has  the  power  of  death.  But 
because  His  people  were  partakers  of  flesh  and  blood  Jesus 
partook  of  the  same,  that  He  might  destroy  him  that 
had  the  power  of  death,  that  is,  the  devil.  I  have  the 
picture  in  my  mind  this  way  that  when  Moses  died  the 
devil  claimed  the  body — "that  is  mine ;  he  is  dead." 

Wherever  there  is  death,  though  we  may  not  see  him, 
and  our  friends  may  not  see  him,  yet  he,  Satan,  is  there. 
He  will  be  in  the  room  when  we  die,  and  if  we  die  out 
of  Christ  he  will  claim  our  body. 

But  when  he  went  to  claim  the  body  of  Moses, 
Michael  met  him :  "You  cannot  touch  the  body  of  a  son 
of  God.  That  is  in  the  keeping  of  the  angels  of  God  until 
it  is  raised  from  the  dead."  It  is  certainly  a  beautiful 
thought. 

Or,  yet  again,  by  the  body  of  Moses  may  be  under- 
stood his  institutions.     So,  after  the  downfall  of  the 


THE  BOOK  OF  JUDE  319 

Jewish  monarchy,  Satan  resisted  the  restoration  and 
re-estabHshment  of  the  hierarchy  under  Joshua,  the  high 
priest  and  Zerubbabel,  but  was  rebuked  of  the  Lord. 
This  supposition  h-as  this  merit:  There  is  an  O.  T. 
record  of  it  containing  the  very  words  which  Jude 
quotes:  "The  Lord  rebuke  thee."    See  Zech.  3:1,  2. 

Consider  next  verse  11,  the  woe  pronounced  on  a 
threefold  sin.  "Woe  unto  them !  For  they  went  in 
the  way  of  Cain,  and  ran  riotously  in  the  error  of 
Balaam  for  hire,  and  perished  in  the  gainsayings  of 
Korah."  What  the  way  of  Cain,  the  error  of  Balaam, 
the  gainsayings  of  Korah?  These  three  sins  are  dis- 
tinct in  class,  but  all  heinous.  Cain's  way  was  to  reject 
an  expiatory  sin-offering.  Willing  enough  was  he  to 
offer  thank-offerings,  but  not  sin-offerings.  He  denied 
the  need  of  atonement.  Thousands  today  walk  in  his 
way.  Balaam's  error  was  to  suggest  to  Balak  a  way 
by  which  Israel  could  be  separated  from  God,  for  until 
separated  they  could  not  be  cursed.  He  suggested  that 
they  be  corrupted  and  so  alienated  from  God,  through 
the  women  of  the  idolators.  He  knew  this  counsel  was 
evil,  but  offered  for  hire  the  wages  of  unrighteousness. 
Thousands  today  go  astray  from  the  same  motive. 
Korah's  gainsaying  was  rebellion  against  properly  con- 
stituted authority.  God  Himself  had  given  Aaron  and 
Moses  their  authority.  Korah  'railed  at  them  as  no 
better  than  himself.  This  Lycus  Valley  heresy  partook 
of  all  these  sins :  blasphemy,  infidelity,  impurity,  an- 
archy and  covetousness. 

The  I2th  verse:  "These  are  they  that  are  hidden 
rocks  in  your  love-feasts" — "agapae,"  that  is  the  only 
place  in  the  Bible  where  that  word  occurs.  But  in  H 
Peter  2  we  find  feasts — not  /oz'^-feasts.  Now  a  word 
on  those  love-feasts,  of  which  so  much  is  written  in 


320  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

ecclesiastical  history.  In  Acts  2  it  is  evident  there  is 
a  distinction  between  the  Lord's  Supper  and  the  ordinary 
meal  of  the  Christians.  The  Lord's  Supper  is  in  verse 
42,  "breaking  of  bread" — "they  ate  their  meat  from 
house  to  house  with  gladness  of  heart,"  the  common 
meal,  verse  46.  In  Acts  6  there  is  evidence  of  a  common 
fund  out  of  which  the  majority  of  the  disciples  at  that 
big  meeting  were  fed.  That  money  was  provided  by 
the  richer  class ;  that  is,  they  bought  the  provisions 
for  the  daily  ministration.  In  the  letter  to  Corinthians, 
there  is  evidence  of  a  common  meal  at  which  some 
ate  like  gluttons  and  drank  like  drunkards.  That  is 
not  the  Lord's  Supper  at  all,  but  the  fact  remains  tha^ 
they  confused  these  feasts  with  the  Lord's  Supper.  Peter 
says  that  they  had  these  feasts.  Jude  alone  gives  the 
name — love-feasts.  The  author  dissents  from  the  pub- 
lished views  of  Norman  Fox.  The  Lord's  Supper  was 
one  thing, — these  feasts  were  charity  feasts.  And  in  those 
countries  where  many  of  the  congregation  were  slaves  and 
poor  people,  they  were  marvelous  acts  of  charity — real 
love  feasts,  until  perverted.  The  Methodists  have  ex- 
perience meetings  which  they  call  "love  feasts" — not  food 
for  the  body,  but  food  for  the  soul. 

Jude  says,  "these  heretics  are  hidden  rocks  in  your 
love  feasts."  Any  man  who  comes  to  a  Christian  love 
feast  having  eyes  full  of  lust  is  a  hidden  rock  in  that 
love  feast:  "Shepherds  that  without  fear  feed  them- 
selves" ;  "clouds  without  water  carried  along  by  winds ; 
autumn  trees  without  fruit,  twice  dead,  plucked  up  by  the 
roots;  wild  waves  of  the  sea  foaming  out  their  own 
shame."  These  vivid  illustrations  show  that  this  man 
had  rare  descriptive  powers. 

The  last  thing  that  I  call  your  attention  to  is  in  the 
14th   verse:     "And   to  these  also   Enoch,  the   seventh 


THE  BOOK  OF  JUDE  321 

from  Adam,  prophesied,  saying:  Behold,  the  Lord  came 
with  ten  thousand  of  his  holy  ones  (that  is  past  tense 
but  prophetic  future)  to  execute  judgment  upon  all, 
and  convict  all  the  ungodly  of  all  their  works  of  ungod- 
liness which  they  have  ungodlily  wrought,  and  of  all 
the  hard  things  which  ungodly  sinners  have  spoken 
against  Him."  This  is  claimed  to  be  a  direct  quotation 
from  the  apocryphal  Book  of  Enoch.  What  about  that 
book? 

About  three  years  before  the  Revolutionary  War  the 
Book  of  Enoch  was  found.  It  was  translated  into  the 
Coptic  language,  and  three  years  before  I  was  born  it 
was  translated  into  English.  I  have  a  copy  in  English. 
So  from  1773  to  the  present  the  modern  world  has  had 
the  book.  There  are  references  to  such  a  book  that  ex- 
tend back  to  the  third  century,  but  none  of  them  go 
back  as  far  as  Jude  goes,  and  there  is  no  historical 
evidence  as  to  when  the  book  was  written,  but  the 
statements  in  the  book  show  to  my  mind  as  clear  as 
a  sunbeam  that  it  was  written  after  Jude  was  written. 
It  was  written  by  a  Jew,  and  the  Jew,  whoever  he  was, 
was  either  a  Christian,  or  was  so  imbued  with  the  ideas 
of  the  Messiah  and  of  the  General  Judgment  as  taught 
in  N.  T.,  that  the  Jews  rejected  the  book  and  won't 
claim  it.  In  no  O.  T.  book  is  there  such  a  vivid  descrip- 
tion of  the  General  Judgment.  Its  judgment  ideas  and 
Messiah  ideas  are  borrowed  from  N.  T.  writers.  One 
sentence  only  in  the  Book  of  Enoch  to  some  extent  par- 
allels Jude,  verses  14,  15.  The  last  clause  of  Jude 
15  is  not  in  the  Book  of  Enoch,  to-wit:  "and  of  all  the 
hard  things  which  ungodly  sinners  have  spoken  against 
him."  The  question  is :  Which  quoted  from  the  other  ? 
If  indeed  either  quoted  from  the  other.  There  is  no  his- 
torical evidence  whatever  that  the  author  of  the  Book  of 


322  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Enoch  wrote  before  Jude.  The  development  of  late 
Jewish  ideas  on  angels,  on  the  judgment,  on  the  Messiah 
found  in  the  Book  of  Enoch  all  point  to  post  apostolic 
times.  There  was  much  similar  Jewish  literature  after 
the  apostolic  days. 

The  author  believes  that  Jude  was  written  before 
the  Book  of  Enoch.  It  is  quite  probable  that  whoever 
wrote  the  book  of  Enoch  got  his  conception  from  Jude 
and  not  Jude  from  the  other.  Some  say  that  this  book 
was  written  at  different  times  by  different  authors — that 
the  first  part  of  it  was  written  about  70  years  before 
Christ,  and  the  latter  part  was  written  in  the  middle  of 
the  second  century.  While  they  bring  no  historical 
evidence,  they  base  their  idea  upon  their  internal  criticism. 
The  author  has  little  respect  for  the  assumed  power  of 
higher  critics  to  dissect  a  book,  relegating  its  fragments 
to  different  authors  and  different  ages.  Their  exploits 
on  many  O.  T.  books  and  on  I  Corinthians  do  not 
incline  him  to  accord  them  the  infallibility  they  assume 
in  partitioning  books. 

Before  we  concede  that  Jude  quoted  from  that  book 
let  us  wait  until  they  prove  when  that  book  was  written. 
Where  then  did  Jude  get  his  information  that  Enoch 
prophesied?  He  got  it  from  the  same  source  that  in- 
formed Peter  that  Noah  was  a  preacher  and  of  Lot's 
state  of  mind  in  regard  to  the  iniquities  of  the  Sodom- 
ites and  informed  Paul  of  the  names  of  the  Egyptian 
magicians — from  inspiration. 

The  other  matters  in  this  letter  are  not  difficult  of 
interpretation. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  the  occasion  of  the  letter? 

2.  What  its  purpose? 

3.  Explain  "common  salvation." 


THE  BOOK  OF  JUDE  323 

A.    Explain  Paul's  "common  faith."  .   *     .t,» 

5.    Explain  Jude's  "The  Faith  once  for  all  delivered  to  the 

^^e"  ^Combine   the   three   ideas    and    show   their   importance   as 

related.  «  ,     r  -.u  .. 

7.    Cite  other  N.  T.  references  to    the  faith.  ^  .  ,  „, 

8     Who  wrote  a  valuable  book  on  "Faith  and  the  Faith   .'' 

9.  What  the   teachings   of   the   heretics   against   whom   Jude 

10.  What  three  historical  examples  showing  that  God  punishes 
heresies  and  sins?  "  .        ,      t   j  it) 

11.  What  the  sin  of  the  angels  as  given  by  Jude  expressly :; 

12.  Give   the  argument  against  "The   sons  of   God     in  Uen. 
6:1-4,  meaning  angels?  _ 

13.  When  was  the  Septuagmt  translation  made? 

14.  What  the  rendering  of   "sons  of  God"   in  Gen.  6:1-4  m 
some   Septuagint  manuscripts  ,    .     .,         r  ,  1 

15.  From  whom  did  the  later  Jews  get  their  idea  of  heavenly 
beings  mating  with  human  beings?  »    /-      1 

16.  What    the    antecedent    of    the    pronoun      these,      Greek 
"toutois,"  in  Jude  7?  r  tvt-  v     1 

17     In  what  books  of  the  Bible  appears  the  name  of  Michael, 
and  how  do  the  Scriptures  distinguish  his  mission  from  Gabriels.-' 

18.  What  three  possible  explanations  of  the  contention  for  the 
body  of  Moses,  and  which,  if  any,  do  you  prefer? 

19.  Distinguish  between  the  sins  of  Cain,  Balaam  and  Koran, 
20!     Between  the  Lord's  Supper  and  love- feasts. 

21      What  do  you  know  of  the  apocryphal  book  of  Enoch? 

22.  What  one  sentence  of  that  book  parallels  Jude  14  and  the 

first  clause  of  15?  .,  ^    ,      ,  ^      r  ^t.         •*.•  „ 

23.  Is  there  any  historical  evidence  of  the  date  of  the  writing 

of  this  book?  ,.     ...       , 

24.  Was  there  a  considerable  Jewish  post-apostohc  literature 

similar  to  this  book?  ,  .  i-     j  .       r 

25.  What  things  in  this  book  point  to  a  post-apostolic  date  ot 
composition?  t   j   :> 

26.  Why  is  it  probable  that  its  author  quoted  from  jude.'' 


XXVI 

FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN— AN  INTRODUCTION, 
ANAYSIS,  EXPOSITION 

Scripture:   1  Jno.  1:1-5:21 

WE  now  come  to  the  writings  of  John,  the  last 
surviving  apostle,  having  already  considered 
his  gospel  in  connection  with  Matthew,  Mark, 
and  Luke.  The  work  before  us  is  his  three  letters  and 
Revelation.  The  author  believes  that  John  wrote  noth- 
ing before  the  fall  of  Jerusalem  and  the  death  of  all 
the  other  New  Testament  writers.  Certainly  Peter, 
Paul,  and  James,  the  Lord's  brother,  have  all  suffered 
martyrdom.  Of  all  the  mighty  hosts,  upon  whom  the 
Spirit  of  God  rested  in  attesting  and  inspiring  power, 
John  stands  alone.  It  is  his  office  to  supplement  all  their 
inspired  writings  and  to  close  up  forever  the  Bible 
canon.  For  more  than  fifteen  centuries,  from  Moses 
to  John,  men  have  been  moved  by  the  Holy  Spirit  to 
speak  and  write  for  God.  This  man's  writings  put  the 
final  seal  to  the  faith  once  for  all  delivered  to  the 
saints.  As  I  have  said  before,  new  light  may  indeed 
break  out  from  that  word,  but  when  this  man  died  the 
word  itself  receives  no  more  additions.  In  John  the 
language  of  Paul  is  fulfilled ;  prophecies  are  done  away ; 
tongues  have  ceased ;  authoritative  knowledge  ends.  And 
the  words  of  Daniel  are  fulfilled,  the  vision  is  sealed  up, 
and  all  that  will  be  needed  henceforth  until  Jesus  comes 
will  be  the  illumination  of  the  Spirit  to  enable  us  to 

324 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  325 

understand  what  is  written,  no  word  of  which  is  of  pri- 
vate interpretation. 

John  himself  is  now  an  old  man.  We  have  considered 
his  New  Testament  history  in  the  introduction  to  his 
gospel.  His  writings  are  varied:  gospel,  epistles,  and 
apocalypse.  The  variety  appears  even  in  the  epistles. 
The  first  one  is  general  and  is  an  epitome  of  theology. 
The  second  one  is  addressed  to  a  Christian  woman  con- 
cerning her  children,  and  the  third  one  to  a  Christian 
brother  concerning  missions  and  the  strife  in  the  church 
between  the  anti-missionary  and  the  missionary. 

So  this  first  letter  of  his  is  his  first  New  Testament 
book.  Its  date  is  not  earlier  than  A.  D.  80,  and  may  pos- 
sibly be  as  late  as  A.  D.  85.  He  writes  from  Ephesus, 
the  scene  of  Paul's  labors,  the  scene  of  the  Gnostic 
philosophy  which  originated  in  the  Lycus  Valley,  in  the 
same  Roman  province,  and  not  very  far  from  Ephesus, 
and  which  is  now  more  developed  than  when  it  called 
forth  the  later  letters  of  Paul  and  the  Second  Letter 
of  Peter,  and  Jude. 

There  has  never  been  a  serious  question  of  the  authen- 
ticity or  the  canonicity  of  this  first  letter.  We  call  a 
letter  authentic  when  it  was  written  by  the  one  to  whom 
it  is  attributed,  whether  the  name  is  given  or  not;  we 
call  it  canonical  when  the  evidence  shows  it  to  be  the 
word  of  God.  Polycarp,  one  of  his  own  disciples,  Igna- 
tius, Papias,  Irenaeus,  all  living  close  to  the  apostolic 
times,  with  abundant  North  African  testimony,  including 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  Tertullian,  Origen,  Cyprian,  and 
Athanasius,  so  witness  to  this  book  that  the  historical 
evidence,  apart  from  its  inclusion  in  manuscripts  and 
versions,  it  is  not  worth  our  while  just  now  to  consider 
the  matter  further.  The  subject  matter  of  the  letter  is 
all  congruous  with  what  we  know  of  the  writer,  and 


326  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

with  all  his  other  writings.  Evidently  whoever  wrote 
this  book  wrote  the  gospel.  So  that  apart  from  the 
historical  or  external  evidence,  by  the  internal  evidence 
alone  the  question  of  the  authenticity  and  the  canonicity 
of  this  letter  is  settled. 

The  persons  addressed  are  evidently,  from  the  context, 
the  Christians  of  Asia  Minor.  The  occasion  of  the 
letter  is  the  prevalence  and  development  of  the  Gnos- 
tic philosophy,  which  now  contests  both  the  humanity 
and  dignity  of  our  Lord,  and  contests  all  of  His  offices 
and  all  of  the  New  Testament  doctrines  concerning 
sin.  The  letter  is  a  standing  witness  to  the  Holy  Trin- 
ity, the  personality  of  Satan,  the  nature  and  origin  of 
sin,  and  of  the  conflict  between  the  powers  of  good  and 
evil  for  the  supremacy  over  man  and  over  the  world. 

From  the  most  ancient  Christian  times,  John  is  called 
the  theologian,  and  in  no  other  document  on  earth  of 
the  same  space  is  such  profound  theology  as  is  in  this 
letter.  So  if  the  reader  does  not  like  deep  water,  he 
had  better  get  in  his  little  boat  and  seek  the  shore.  We 
strike  deep  water  in  this  letter  of  John. 

To  the  integrity  of  this  book,  there  is  only  one  ex- 
ception. The  integrity  of  a  book  is  established  when  it 
comes  to  us  in  the  shape  it  was  originally  delivered, 
it  has  not  lost  anything  out  of  it,  and  nothing  has  been 
added  to  it.  Now,  as  to  the  integrity  of  this  book,  there 
is  one  exception.  In  the  King  James  version,  John  5  7, 
8,  reads :  "For  there  are  three  that  bear  witness  in 
heaven,  the  Father,  the  Word  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  and 
these  three  are  one."  Now  look  at  the  8th  verse,  two 
words  of  the  second  line,  "in  earth" — "there  are  three 
that  bear  witness  in  earth."  Let  us  take  out  of  the 
King  James  version  all  the  7th  verse  and  the  words, 
"in  earth,"  of  the  8th  verse.     They  are  unquestionably 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  327 

an  interpolation.  They  do  not  appear  in  any  of  the 
ancient  manuscripts,  and  our  standard  version  leaves 
them  out.  So  our  standard  version  reads:  "For  there 
are  three  who  bear  witness" — it  does  not  say  anything 
about  any  three  in  earth  or  in  heaven — "the  Spirit,  and 
the  Water,  and  the  Blood,  and  the  three  agree  in  one." 

With  the  exception  of  that  7th  verse  and  the  words 
"in  earth"  of  the  8th  verse  of  the  common  version, 
which  certainly  are  an  interpolation  by  a  much  later 
writer  (probably  a  copyist  put  them  in  to  fill  out  his 
ideas) — they  do  not  show  in  any  reputable  authentic 
text — the  book  is  strictly  authentic. 

It  is  somewhat  difficult  to  construct  an  orderly  out- 
line of  this  letter,  but  we  give  this  as  a  substantial 
analysis : 

Outline 

1.  From  chapter  1:1  to  3:3,  arguing  from  the  nature 
and  offices  of  the  three  persons  of  the  Holy  Trinity  as 
exhibited  in  the  plan  of  salvation,  the  apostle  exhorts 
to  a  holy  life  as  the  purpose  of  redemption, 

2.  From  the  3rd  chapter  and  4th  verse  to  the  9th 
verse,  and  in  the  5th  chapter  from  the  15th  to  i8th 
verses,  we  have  a  definition  of  sin — that  the  devil  is  its 
author,  and  that  he  opposes  the  work  of  the  Trinity  in 
the  salvation  of  man,  and  we  are  told  when  sin  is 
unpardonable. 

3.  Commencing  at  the  3rd  chapter  and  loth  verse  to 
24th  verse,  and  then  the  4th  chapter  from  the  7th  to 
2ist  verse,  and  the  5th  chapter  and  12th  verse,  we  have 
the  evidences  which  distinguish  between  God's  children 
and  the  devil's  children. 

4.  In  the  4th  chapter  from  the  ist  verse  to  the  6th 


328  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

verse,  we  have  the  evidences  which  discriminate  between 
God's  preachers  and  the  devil's  preachers. 

5.  In  the  5th  chapter  from  the  13th  to  21st  verse,  we 
have  the  purpose  of  the  letter,  that  we  may  know — in 
other  words,  that  we  may  distinguish  between  the  gospel 
knowledge  and  the  gnosis  of  the  heretics,  and  between 
the  gospel  knowledge  and  the  agnosis  of  the  modern 
heretics. 

That  is  a  very  fair  analysis  of  the  book.  There  is, 
however,  another  way  to  analyze  this  letter,  and  I  will 
follow  this  other  plan  in  the  exposition  of  the  letter  that 
will  not  follow  the  order  of  its  words.  So  we  will 
commence  the  analysis  of  the  first  letter  of  John  accord- 
ing to  my  second  analysis,  which  will  reveal  itself  as  it 
progresses. 

Exposition 

I.  The  first  item  of  this  second  analysis  is  a  view  of 
a  lost  liforld.  Let  us  see  what  that  view  is.  In  the  5th 
chapter  and  the  19th  verse,  we  have  this  picture:  "We 
know  *  *  *  that  the  whole  world  lieth  in  the  evil 
one."  We  commence  on  theology  right  there,  that  the 
whole  of  this  world  lieth  in  the  evil  one.  In  some  way 
he  has  pushed  aside  the  man  God  made,  the  ordained 
ruler  of  this  world,  and  has  usurped  the  dominion  which 
God  originally  bestowed  upon  man.  That  takes  a  leap 
back  to  Genesis,  and  when  we  go  to  preach  it,  we  must 
not  exempt  any  part  of  this  world  that  is  under  the 
dominion  of  Satan. 

The  world  under  Satan's  dominion  is  in  spiritual 
darkness  and  death.  Over  and  over  again  in  this  letter 
we  have  these  words :  "darkness  and  death."  Of  course 
it  means  spiritual  darkness ;  it  means  that  there  is  a 
privation    of    spiritual    light;    that   its    inhabitants    are 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  329 

blinded;  it  means  that  they  are  in  a  state  of  spiritual 
death  or  privation  of  any  part  of  the  true  life.  They 
are  dead,  and  they  are  in  darkness.  Let  us  recall  in 
connection  with  this  thought  the  commission  of  Paul: 
"I  send  you  to  the  Gentiles  to  turn  them  from  darkness 
into  light,  from  the  power  of  Satan  unto  God,  that  they 
may  receive  an  inheritance,  among  them  that  are  sanc- 
tified by  faith  in  me."  The  whole  letter  of  John  is 
based  upon  this  deplorable  view  of  the  condition  of  the 
lost  world  as  being  under  the  power  of  Satan. 

Let  us  consider  the  second  chapter  and  the  i6th  verse: 
"For  all  that  is  in  the  world,  the  lust  of  the  flesh,  and 
the  lust  of  the  eyes,  and  the  vainglory  of  life,  is  not  of 
the  Father,  but  is  of  the  world."  That  gives  us  the 
spirit  which  is  rampant  in  the  world :  everything  that 
may  be  summed  up  under  animal  appetite — the  lust  of 
the  flesh,  and  flesh  means  much  more  than  that  in  the 
scriptures.  Flesh  is  not  confined  to  the  body,  but  is 
the  entire  carnal  man.  It  includes  enmity,  hate,  malice, 
evil  thinking,  evil  imagination.  Let  us  never  forget  that 
the  dominating  lust  of  the  world,  speaking  with  refer- 
ence to  the  physical  or  inner  man,  is  of  that  kind.  We 
may  whitewash  it,  and  civilization  does  whitewash  it ; 
we  may  make  it  look  respectable,  but  inwardly  it  is  full 
of  rottenness  and  dead  men's  bones. 

Look  at  the  second  item :  "Lust  of  the  eyes."  That 
refers  to  covetousness  or  the  desire  for  the  things  seen. 
James,  in  his  letter,  refers  to  it  when  he  describes  the 
development  of  sin  thus:  "Each  man  is  tempted  when 
he  is  drawn  away  by  his  own  lusts,  and  enticed.  Then 
the  lust,  when  it  hath  conceived,  beareth  sin,  and  the 
sin,  when  it  is  full  grown,  bringeth  forth  death."  Or, 
as  Achan  expresses  it :  "I  saw  a  goodly  Babylonish 
mantle  and  desired  it  and  took  it,"  or,  "When  Eve  saw 


330  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

that  the  fruit  of  the  tree  was  good,  or  seemed  to  be 
good,  she  desired  it  and  took  it."  That  is  the  lust  of 
the  eyes. 

He  adds:  "Vain  glory  of  life;"  everything  that  min- 
isters to  human  vanity ;  the  ambition  to  be  a  ruler ;  the 
desire  to  have  a  more  excellent  automobile  than  our 
neighbor ;  that  our  wife  and  daughter  shall  have  pret- 
tier spring  bonnets ;  that  our  floors  shall  have  more 
elegant  carpets ;  that  our  house  shall  be  more  palatial. 
Just  think  of  that  world  that  lieth  in  the  power  of  the 
evil  one !  It  is  in  spiritual  darkness  and  death,  and 
raging  through  it  is  the  lust  of  the  flesh  and  the  desire 
of  the  eyes  and  the  vainglory  of  life. 

This  world  necessarily  adopts  its  own  maxims  of 
pleasure,  of  amusement  and  of  business  according  to 
its  spirit  or  genius.  It  is  away  from  God,  away  from 
righteousness  and  away  from  the  right.  It  does  not 
mean  in  its  business  to  look  after  our  interests,  but  its 
own.  We  have  to  be  wide  awake  to  keep  from  being 
crushed.  The  men  in  Wall  Street,  or  in  Fort  Worth, 
or  Galveston,  or  Dallas,  or  San  Antonio,  following  their 
business  interests,  will  run  their  Juggernaut  over  every 
other  interest  to  promote  their  own. 

Now  when  we  look  at  that  view  of  a  lost  world  the 
question  comes  up :  Who  did  it  ?  Who  brought  about 
all  this?  We  do  not  have  to  go  far  to  find  out.  Let  us 
look  at  the  3rd  chapter  and  8th  verse  in  which  we  get 
at  the  author  of  a  lost  world :  "To  this  end  was  the  Son 
of  God  manifested,  that  he  might  destroy  the  works  of 
the  devil."  There  he  is,  the  devil.  The  whole  world 
lieth  in  the  evil  one,  that  is,  the  devil. 

This  evil  one  has  several  names  in  the  Bible,  and  each 
name  has  a  special  import.  The  name  here  given,  devil — 
"diabolis" — means  slanderer,  accuser.    He  slanders  God 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  331 

to  man,  and  he  accuses  man  to  God.  He  went  to  Eve 
and  said,  "God  did  not  say  you  should  not  eat  this  fruit," 
and  then  when  he  gets  the  poor  woman  into  trouble,  he 
goes  to  God  and  says,  "Just  look  at  that  woman ;  she  is 
violating  your  law  and  deserves  death."  He  is  an  accuser. 
He  is  the  one  that  entices  to  do  wrong.  He  tells  us 
that  God  is  not  love ;  that  God  hates  us ;  that  God  is 
a  long  way  off  from  us,  and  when  he  gets  us  to  hating 
God  he  goes  straight  up  to  God  and  accuses  us.  After 
we  know  that  to  be  so,  why  on  earth  do  we  give  way  to 
him?  In  another  place,  James  says,  "Resist  the 
devil."  It  is  the  devil  who  brings  evil  to  us  and  to 
the  world. 

How  was  the  loss  of  the  world  brought  about?  This 
letter  answers  it  in  every  chapter.  It  was  lost  by  sin. 
Then,  according  to  this  letter,  what  is  sin?  Whenever 
one  masters  the  doctrine  of  sin  as  taught  in  this  first 
letter  of  John,  he  is  a  theologian  on  this  subject.  Let 
us  look  at  John's  definition  of  sin. 

What  is  sin  ?  The  3rd  chapter  and  4th  verse  tells  us ; 
just  one  word  in  the  last  clause,  the  Greek,  "anomia," 
English,  "lawlessness."  "Sin  is  lawlessness."  Sin  is 
anything  that  does  not  agree  with  "nomos,"  law.  Law- 
lessness is  the  privative  "a"  put  before  the  word  "nomas." 
That  expresses  the  thought  of  sin.  Sin  is  lawlessness. 
In  preaching  on  salvation,  I  always  commence  with  a 
definition  of  sin  and  of  law.  If  sin  is  lawlessness,  what 
is  law?  At  the  last  analysis,  law  is  that  intent  or  pur- 
pose in  the  mind  of  the  Creator  when  He  brought  beings 
into  existence.  That  is  the  inherent  law  of  the  Creator. 
Whether  it  is  ever  expressed  in  statutes  or  not,  is  imma- 
terial. What  God  intended  when  He  brought  a  being 
into  existence  is  the  law  of  that  being,  and  lawlessness 
is  anything  that  fails  of  the  original  intent  of  God. 


332  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

A  certain  Methodist  preacher  defined  sin  thus:  "Sin 
is  the  wilful  transgression  of  a  known  law."  But  there 
can  be  sin  without  any  wilfulness ;  there  can  be  sin 
without  transgression.  Transgression  means  to  go  across 
the  law.  But  we  may  sin  without  going  across  the  law. 
We  may  sin  by  doing  nothing,  or  by  failing  to  do.  We 
can  sin  by  falling  short  of  the  law,  or  sin  by  going 
beyond  it.  "Who  hath  required  this  at  your  hands?" 
We  may  sin,  not  by  transgressing  the  law,  but  by  devi- 
ating a  hair's  breadth  to  the  right  hand  or  the  left  hand. 

Sin  in  its  deepest  form  is  not  the  overt  act,  but  the 
state  of  the  mind  and  heart  out  of  which  the  overt  act 
proceeds. 

Sin  is  lawlessness.  To  illustrate:  I  once  found  a  den 
of  rattle-snakes.  Some  of  them  were  no  longer  than 
my  hand.  They  had  no  fangs,  no  rattles,  no  poison.  If 
I  had  taken  one  of  the  little  fellows  away  from  his 
parents  and  environment  and  carried  him  home  and 
fed  him  on  the  milk  for  babies,  before  long  his  rattles 
would  have  grown,  his  fangs  would  have  formed,  his 
poison  would  have  secreted,  and  if  I  should  have  taken 
him  up  to  heaven  he  would  have  thrown  himself  into 
a  coil  and  struck  at  an  angel  passing  by. 

But  we  are  not  done  with  the  definition  yet.  The  4th 
chapter  and  6th  verse,  the  last  clause :  "By  this  we  know 
the  spirit  of  truth  and  the  spirit  of  error,"  Greek,  "plane." 
Sin  is  whatever  is  opposed  to  truth,  i.  e.,  error,  falsehood, 
in  whatever  form.  Again  5:17:  "every  unrighteousness 
is  sin."  There  we  have  another  Greek  word :  "adikia" — 
every  act  of  unrighteousness.  Righteousness  is  a  law 
term.  Whatever  is  in  conformity  with  the  law  is  right ; 
whatever  does  not  quadrate  with  law  is  not  right,  and 
every  case  of  unrighteousness  is  sin.  We  thus  have  a 
definition  in  three  words :    lawlessness,  as  opposed  to 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN 

the  law;  error,  as  opposed  to  truth;  unrighteousness, 
as  opposed  to  righteousness — that  is  sin. 

The  next  question  is:  What  is  the  spiritual  relation 
of  every  member  of  this  lost  world  to  the  devil?  The 
3rd  chapter  and  8th  to  loth  verse :  "And  whosoever 
doeth  unrighteousness  is  of  the  devil,"  and  then  in  the 
loth  verse:  "children  of  the  devil."  So  the  members  of 
the  world  are  children  of  the  devil. 

Now  the  next  item :  What  is  the  characteristic  of  the 
members  of  the  world?  It  is  the  opposite  of  what  God 
is,  and  since  God  is  love,  the  chief  characteristic  of  the 
world  is  hate,  that  is,  hate  toward  God,  hate  toward 
anything  that  is  Godlike — God's  standard,  God's  people. 
Hate  towards  these  is  the  characteristic  of  the  citizens 
of  this  world. 

Thus  I  have  given  a  view  of  the  lost  world,  who  caused 
it  to  be  lost,  what  the  means  by  which  he  brought  about 
its  loss,  and  what  the  import  of  that  means. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  the  place,  time  and  conditions  of  John's  first  letter? 

2.  What  the  object,  as  to  other  writings  and  the  canon? 

3.  What  the  variety  of  his  writings? 

4.  Tell  about  the  canonicity  of  this  letter. 

5.  Who  addressed? 

6.  What  exception  to  the  integrity  of  this  letter? 

7.  Give  an  outline. 

8.  What  kind  of  analysis  followed  in  the  exposition  and  what 
its  items? 

9.  In  the  letter's  view  of  a  lost  world,   answer: 

(i)  Who  caused  the  loss? 

(2)  Through  what  means? 

(3)  Give  the  letter's  definition  of  sin  in  three  words. 

(4)  State   the   condition   of   the    world   as    lost   and   its 

dominant  passions. 


XXVII 

FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN,  EXPOSITION— 
(Continued) 

Scriptures:   All  references 

THE  last  chapter  closed  with  giving  a  view  of  a 
lost  world,  who  brought  about  this  ruin,  how 
he  brought  it  about,  and  what  is  the  essence  of 
sin  through  which  he  brought  it  about.  Now,  this  chap- 
ter is  to  continue  the  thought  by  showing  a  world  saved, 
who  saved  it  and  how  it  was  saved.  I  commence  by 
giving  a  view  of  each  person  of  the  triune  God — Father, 
Son,  and  Holy  Spirit,  the  three  parties  involved  in  the 
salvation  of  the  world. 

So  far  as  this  first  letter  of  John  is  concerned,  what 
is  the  view  of  the  Father?  The  ist  chapter  and  5th 
verse  says,  "God  is  light."  We  saw  the  world  when  it 
was  lost,  wrapped  in  darkness.  But  "God  is  light."  The 
4th  chapter  and  15th  verse  says,  "God  is  love."  We 
saw  the  world  under  the  dominion  of  hate.  We  advance 
in  this  view,  and  show  how  that  love  and  that  light  are 
manifested  in  the  salvation  of  man.  The  4th  chapter 
and  14th  verse  says  that  the  Father  sent  his  Son  to  be 
the  Savior  of  the  world ;  sent  his  Son  to  save  that  world 
which  was  lost  through  Satan;  that  the  Son  is  to  save 
the  world  by  being  its  light;  He  is  to  bring  the  dark 
world  in  touch  with  God  and  light,  and  hence  in  His  gos- 
pel and  teachings  Jesus  Christ  is  said  to  be  the  "true 
light  that  lighteth  every  man  that  cometh  into  the  world." 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  (Cont.)        335 

This  leads  us  to  the  next  question  in  the  view  of  the 
Father:  How  was  his  Son  to  save  the  world,  since  He 
sent  Him  to  be  the  Savior  of  the  world?  He  certainly 
has  some  plan  of  salvation.  What  is  it?  The  4th 
chapter,  9th  and  loth  verses  say  this:  "Herein  was  the 
love  of  God  manifested  that  God  hath  sent  His  only 
begotten  Son  into  the  world  that  we  might  live  through 
Him."  See  the  state  of  the  world :  It  was  in  darkness ; 
it  was  also  in  death,  death  the  penalty  of  sin.  He  sent 
His  Son  into  the  world  that  we  might  live  through  Him. 
The  loth  verse :  "Herein  is  love ;  not  that  we  loved  God, 
but  that  He  loved  us  and  sent  His  Son  to  be  the  propitia- 
tion for  our  sins." 

That  is  a  strong  word,  "propitiation."  It  is  that  word 
which  is  used  to  describe  the  mercy  seat,  and  it  is  the 
blood  sprinkled  upon  that  mercy  seat  that  propitiates — 
makes  atonement.  He  sent  His  Son  into  the  world  to 
save  the  world  by  becoming  a  propitiation  for  the  sins 
of  the  world.    That  was  His  object  in  sending  Him. 

I  note  that  many  modern  teachers  say  that  He  saves 
by  His  example,  and  not  otherwise.  Or,  that  He  saves 
by  living  and  not  dying.  But  a  propitiation  is  a  sacrifice 
that  has  been  offered  unto  death,  in  order  to  placate  the 
wrath  of  God  against  sin.  He  sent  His  Son  to  be  a  pro- 
pitiation. That  is  a  vital  doctrine.  We  should  not 
receive  a  man  into  the  church,  nor  ordain  a  man  to  the 
ministry,  who  denies  the  expiation  of  sin  through  the 
propitiation  of  Christ. 

We  are  now  looking  to  see  how  this  world  is  saved. 
W^e  have  seen  that  back  of  it  is  the  Father's  love,  and 
that  this  love  prompts  Him  to  send  His  only  Son  to  be 
a  propitiation,  or,  as  Paul  puts  it,  Rom.  3  •.24,  25 :  "Being 
justified  freely  by  His  grace  through  the  redemption  that 
is  in  Christ  Jesus:  zvhom  God  set  forth  to  be  a  propitia- 


336  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Hon,  through  faith,  in  His  blood."  That  is  the  precise 
thought  of  John  here. 

We  continue  our  study  of  the  view  of  the  Father  in 
the  3rd  chapter  and  ist  verse:  "Behold  what  manner  of 
love  the  Father  hath  bestowed  upon  us  that  we  should 
be  called  the  children  of  God."  We  have  found  the 
world's  inhabitants  to  be  the  children  of  the  devil.  God's 
love  proposes  to  save  them  by  sending  His  Son  to  be  a 
propitiation  for  their  sins,  and  to  make  a  propitiation  by 
the  application  of  which  these  children  of  the  devil  shall 
become  the  children  of  God.  John  does  not  go  on  here  to 
discuss  the  adoption,  as  Paul  does,  that  we  are  to  become 
the  children  of  God  by  adoption.  I  will  show  directly 
how  we  are  to  become  His  children,  but  just  now  let  us 
get  a  view  of  the  Father,  in  relation  to  the  salvation  of 
the  world,  as  presented  in  the  first  letter  of  John. 

We  next  consider  the  view  of  the  Son,  the  second 
person  in  the  Trinity.  Let  us  see  what  is  said  about 
Him  in  the  first  verse :  "That  which  was  from  the  begin- 
ning." What  was  from  the  beginning?  The  last  part 
of  the  verse  answers :  "The  Word  of  life."  That  is  the 
first  view  we  have  of  the  Son.  That  in  the  beginning, 
that  is,  before  there  was  any  world — "In  the  beginning," 
as  John  says  in  his  gospel,  "was  the  Word,  and  the  Word 
was  with  God,  and  the  Word  was  God."  What  word? 
The  Word  of  Life.  It  is  easy  to  see  that  whoever  wrote 
the  first  verse  of  this  letter  wrote  the  first  verse  of  the 
gospel  of  John. 

That  Word  of  life,  existing  from  the  beginning,  invisi- 
ble to  the  world  centuries  after  it  was  created,  is  at  last 
manifested.  Manifested  means  to  make  plain — to  make 
visible.  How  was  that  done?  Let  us  look  at  the  4th 
chapter  and  the  2nd  verse :  "Jesus  Christ  is  come  in  the 
flesh."    That  is  the  way  He  was  manifested.    This  par- 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  (Cont.)        337 

allels  the  ist  chapter  of  the  gospel  of  John:  "In  the 
beginning  was  the  Word,  and  the  Word  was  with  God, 
and  the  Word  was  manifested  and  became  flesh."  This 
One  now,  that  God  sends  into  the  world  to  be  its  Savior, 
must  take  upon  himself  human  nature;  He  must  come 
in  touch  with  the  people  whom  He  is  to  save. 

That  leads  to  the  next  question  in  the  view  of  the 
Son:  How  was  His  coming  in  the  flesh  manifested? 
Let  us  look  at  that  first  verse  again:  "That  which  was 
from  the  beginning,  that  which  we  have  heard,  that 
which  we  have  seen  with  our  eyes,  that  which  we  have 
handled,"  When  Jesus  was  manifested  in  the  flesh  He 
was  so  manifested  that  the  natural  senses  took  hold  of 
Him.  "He  was  audible,  for  we  heard  Him;  He  was 
visible,  for  we  saw  Him;  He  was  palpable,  for  we 
touched  Him,  handled  Him."  So  that  manifestation  was 
real  and  recognizable  by  the  senses  and  not  merely 
apparent. 

The  Gnostics  taught  that  Jesus  Christ  in  the  flesh  was 
not  a  reality,  but  was  a  mere  appearance,  something  that 
looked  like  a  man,  but  it  was  not  really  a  man.  Jesus 
met  that  very  doubt  in  the  minds  of  one  of  His  apostles 
when  He  said,  "Thomas,  reach  hither  thy  fingers  and 
put  them  into  the  prints  of  the  nails  in  my  hands.  Reach 
thy  hand  here  and  thrust  it  into  my  side.  A  spirit  hath 
not  flesh  and  bones,  such  as  you  see  me  have ;  handle 
me  and  see."  John,  therefore,  in  this  letter,  teaches  that 
the  incarnation  of  Jesus  Christ  was  not  a  mere  appear- 
ance, but  was  something  actual.  He  could  see  Him,  hear 
Him,  eat  with  Him,  handle  Him,  every  possible  proof 
that  the  human  senses  can  determine. 

The  incarnation  is  a  vital,  fundamental  doctrine  with- 
out whose  acceptance  one  cannot  be  a  Christian. 

The  Son  was  sent  into  the  world  in  such  a  way  that 


338  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

we  can  know  by  the  senses.  But  for  what  purpose? 
Why  did  He  come  into  the  world?  I  have  shown  that 
the  Father  sent  Him  to  be  the  Savior  of  the  world.  He 
was  manifested  in  the  flesh  that  He  might  become  the 
Savior  of  the  world.  How  does  His  incarnation  save 
men  ?  The  2nd  chapter  and  2nd  verse :  "And  He  is  the 
propitiation  for  our  sins ;  and  not  for  ours  only,  but  also 
for  the  whole  world."  He  is  to  save  the  world  by 
becoming  a  propitiation  for  sin,  and  thereby  taking  sin 
away. 

How  else  was  He  to  save  the  world  ?  3 :8,  last  clause : 
"To  this  end  was  the  Son  of  God  manifested,  that  He 
might  destroy  the  works  of  the  devil."  There  are  two 
things  He  must  do  if  He  is  to  save  the  world.  "The 
whole  world  Heth  in  the  wicked  one;"  so  he  must  over- 
come that  wicked  one  some  way  and  destroy  his  works. 
"The  whole  world  lieth  in  sin ;"  He  must  in  some  way 
take  away  sin.  As  Jesus  himself  explained :  "When 
a  strong  man  armed,  keepeth  his  goods,  his  goods  are  in 
peace ;  but  when  a  stronger  than  he  is  come,  he  strips 
him  of  his  armor  in  which  he  trusted  and  despoils  him 
of  his  goods."  The  devil  is  the  strong  man  armed  keep- 
ing his  goods  in  peace ;  they  cannot  recover  themselves 
from  the  snares  of  the  devil.  But  God  sends  Jesus  to 
be  the  Savior  of  the  world ;  He  saves  the  world  by 
destroying  the  works  of  the  devil.  As  Paul  puts  it  in 
Hebrews  2 :  "Because  the  children  were  partakers  of 
flesh  and  blood.  He  likewise  partook  of  the  same,  that 
through  His  own  death  He  might  destroy  him  that  had 
the  power  of  death,  that  is,  the  devil." 

The  conflict  between  the  devil  and  the  incarnate  Son 
of  God  was  the  most  personal  and  real  battle  ever  fought 
in  the  world.  Indeed,  Jesus  calls  its  culmination  the 
crisis  of  this  world.     Men  talk  about  a  crisis  in  very 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  (Cont.)        339 

little  things,  but  that  was  the  world-crisis  when  for  the 
redemption  of  the  world,  the  seed  of  the  woman  bruised 
the  serpent's  head.  Hence  Paul  writes  that  on  the  cross 
"He  overcame  principalities  and  powers,  and  made  a 
show  of  them  openly."  When  I  preached  my  sermon  on 
the  "Three  Hours  of  Darkness  on  the  Cross"  in  Rich- 
mond, Va.,  some  people  said  that  the  thoughts  in  it  were 
too  horrible,  that  it  was  too  realistic.  It  is  an  exceedingly 
real  thing  that  the  world  lies  in  the  evil  one,  in  darkness, 
and  in  order  to  save  the  world  Christ  had  to  enter  into 
that  realm  of  darkness,  and  fight  and  overcome  the 
principalities  of  darkness,  else  the  world  would  never 
be  saved. 

We  are  not  theologians  if  we  do  not  have  correct 
views  of  a  personal  devil,  between  whom  and  our  Savior 
occurred  the  conflict  of  the  ages  on  the  cross. 

See  further  the  3rd  chapter  and  5th  verse :  "And  ye 
know  that  He  was  manifested  to  take  away  sins ;  and 
in  Him  is  no  sin."  This  sinless  One  was  manifested  to 
take  away  sin.  John  the  Baptist,  on  seeing  Jesus  ap- 
proaching, pointed  at  Him  and  said,  "Behold  the  Lamb 
of  God,  that  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world!"  A  lion 
could  not  take  away  the  sin  of  the  world,  but  a  Lamb 
could  take  it  away,  because  the  Lamb  was  the  propitia- 
tion for  sin. 

We  are  still  considering  a  view  of  the  Son,  as  pre- 
sented here,  and  we  have  gone  to  the  cross.  We  have 
seen  how  He  conquered  the  devil  on  the  cross,  and  we 
have  seen  His  life  laid  down  as  a  propitiation  for  sin. 
How  is  that  propitiation  to  be  further  secured  to  us 
after  justification?  The  2nd  chapter  and  2nd  verse 
answers :  "And  if  any  man  sin,  we  have  an  advocate  with 
the  Father,  Jesus  Christ  the  righteous."  Here  He  comes 
before  us,  not  as  a  sacrifice,  but  as  an  advocate — a  high 


THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

priest  to  make  intercession  for  us,  having  died  as  a 
sacrifice.  As  a  high  priest  He  enters  heaven  and  pleads 
the  merits  of  His  own  sacrificial  blood,  and  makes  inter- 
cession for  us  on  the  strength  of  it. 

We  are  tracing  the  process  of  salvation,  but  the  sal- 
vation is  not  yet  complete.  In  the  2nd  chapter  and  28th 
verse  we  have  another  view  of  the  Savior :  "Now,  my 
little  children,  abide  ye  in  Him  that  if  He  shall  be  mani- 
fest, that  we  may  have  boldness  and  not  be  ashamed  at 
His  coming."  This  is  a  second  manifestation  of  Him. 
This  is  not  His  incarnation.  It  is  His  manifestation  at 
His  second  advent.  He  is  to  come  a  second  time,  not  as 
a  sin-offering,  but  as  a  Judge,  and  at  His  coming  He 
will  raise  the  dead  and  glorify  their  bodies,  and  He  will 
change  the  living.  In  the  3rd  chapter  and  2nd  verse 
we  have  an  added  thought :  "Beloved,  now  are  we  the 
children  of  God,  and  it  is  not  yet  made  manifest  what 
we  shall  be ;  we  know  that  if  He  be  manifested  we  shall 
be  like  Him,  for  we  shall  see  Him  even  as  He  is."  So 
at  His  second  advent  there  takes  place  a  change  in  our 
bodies  that  makes  them  like  His  risen  and  glorified  body. 
But  how  is  His  incarnation  and  propitiation  attested? 
Fifth  chapter  and  6th  verse:  "This  is  He  that  came  by 
water  and  blood,  even  Jesus  Christ.  Not  with  water 
only,  but  with  water  and  with  the  blood.  And  it  is  the 
Spirit  that  beareth  witness  because  the  Spirit  is  the 
truth.  There  are  three  who  bear  witness,  the  Spirit, 
the  water,  and  the  blood,  and  the  three  agree  in  one." 
Whatever  one  testifies,  the  three  testify.  Now,  what 
does  that  mean?  What  the  testimony  of  that  coming 
by  water,  and  the  testimony  of  that  coming  by  blood, 
and  the  testimony  of  the  Spirit,  all  to  a  single  fact,  the 
testimony  to  agree  in  one?  How  was  the  incarnate  One 
to  be  identified?    John  the  Baptist  answers.     See  John 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  (Cont.)        341 

1 :30-34.  Evidently  His  coming  by  water  refers  to  His 
baptism  by  John.  In  His  baptism  He  was  identified 
by  the  Father  and  the  Holy  Spirit. 

How  did  He  come  by  blood?  He  came  by  blood  on 
the  cross.  How  did  His  baptism,  and  His  crucifixion, 
and  the  Spirit-witness  all  agree?  His  baptism  sym- 
bolizes His  death,  burial,  and  resurrection ;  His  blood 
was  His  actual  death,  followed  by  His  burial,  and 
resurrection,  which  the  baptism  symbolized.  The  Spir- 
it's testimony  agrees  with  both  in  this,  that  when  He 
was  baptized,  with  that  mapped  out  before  Him  as  His 
mission,  the  Spirit  of  God  descended  upon  Him  in  the 
form  of  a  dove.  The  descent  of  the  Spirit  upon  Christ 
just  after  His  baptism  is  the  witness  of  the  Spirit  to  the 
fact  that  He  comes  to  save  the  world  by  His  death,  burial 
and  resurrection,  which  are  symbolized  in  His  baptism. 

Now,  let  us  get  to  the  blood,  and  the  Spirit  witness 
on  that,  and  see  if  it  agrees  with  the  blood.  Paul  says, 
"Who,  through  the  eternal  Spirit,  offered  himself  as  a 
sacrifice  for  sin."  When  the  blood  was  offered  as  a 
sacrifice  for  sin  it  was  offered  through  the  Spirit.  And 
when  the  church  was  commissioned  to  preach  salvation 
through  the  blood,  it  was  the  outpoured  Spirit  that 
endued  it  with  power.  And  when  the  blood  is  applied 
by  the  Spirit  to  the  individual,  the  Spirit  bears  witness 
of  its  efficacy  with  our  spirit.  Now,  here  we  have  three 
witnesses :  Not  only  the  baptism  of  Christ  as  it  actually 
took  place,  but  its  perpetuity.  Christ  was  buried  in  bap- 
tism. We  were  buried  in  baptism  with  Christ.  And  so 
water  still  speaks.  Wherever  a  creek  or  a  river  flows, 
wherever  are  pools,  lakes,  gulfs,  bays,  or  oceans,  their 
yielding  waves  are  parted  in  baptism.  This  witness  still 
stands. 

How  does  the  witness  of  His  death  still  stand?    He 


342  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

instituted  a  memorial  of  that  death  in  the  Lord's  Supper. 
He  said,  "This  cup  is  the  New  Testament  in  my  blood 
shed  for  the  remission  of  sins.  As  often  as  ye  do  this 
ye  show  forth  my  death  until  I  come."  That  witness  is 
still  standing.  And  inasmuch  as  the  Holy  Spirit  was  sent 
to  abide  with  us  forever,  that  witness  is  standing.  So 
right  now  the  three  witnesses  are  speaking — the  water, 
the  blood,  and  the  Holy  Spirit.  Such  the  view  of  the 
Savior  as  presented  in  this  letter.  The  titles  given  Him 
in  the  letter  are,  "The  Word  of  Life,"  "Jesus  Christ,  the 
Son  of  God,"  and  "Jesus  Christ  the  Messiah."  We  have 
seen  Him  in  this  letter  as  the  sacrifice,  the  priest,  the 
judge.    What  a  marvelous  piece  of  theology  is  this  letter ! 

The  letter  s  view  of  the  Holy  Spirit  in  the  Salvation  of 
the  lost  world.  In  general  terms  the  office  of  the  Spirit 
is  to  apply  and  make  efficacious  to  the  individual  the 
salvation  wrought  by  the  Son  for  the  world.  This  is 
done  in  such  a  way  as  to  bring  the  lost  sinner  into  saving 
touch  with  Christ,  through  faith,  thereby  in  justification 
overcoming  the  guilt  of  all  sin,  and  by  the  application 
of  the  atoning  blood  cleansing  him  from  the  defilement 
of  all  past  sins ;  renewing  his  nature,  thereby  overcoming 
his  love  of  sin  and  bringing  him  into  filial  relations  with 
the  Father  and  securing  him  forever  from  Satan's  power 
to  destroy;  anointing  him,  thereby  giving  him  assured 
knowledge  of  his  acceptance  with  Christ  and  conscious- 
ness of  availing  prayer;  perfecting  his  Spirit  in  holi- 
ness, thereby  destroying  the  dominion  of  sin  and  fitting 
him  for  his  heavenly  estate  and  its  associations  and 
service,  and  completing  his  spiritual  likeness  to  Christ; 
raising  and  glorifying  his  mortal  body,  thereby  com- 
pleting its  likeness  to  the  glorified  body  of  the  Lord. 

These  general  views  of  the  Spirit's  work  appear  par- 
ticularly in  the  following  passages  of  the  letter: 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  (Cont.)        343 

1.  Deliverance  through  faith  from  the  guilt  of  sin, 
1 : 9,  first  clause. 

2.  Cleansing  from  the  defilement  of  sin,  i :  9,  last 
clause. 

3.  Renewing  of  his  nature,  delivering  from  the  love  of 
sin  and  bringing  him  into  filial  relations  with  the  Father 
and  securing  him  forever  from  Satan's  power  to  make 
him  commit  the  unpardonable  sin,  3:2,  9 ;  5:1,  18.  The 
nature  imparted  at  this  new  birth  is  imperishable  because 
it  comes  from  an  indestructible  seed,  as  Peter  also 
explains  it.    See  I  Pet.  1:23-25. 

It  disposes  to  obedience  of  all  God's  commands,  and 
imparts  new  affections  of  love  toward  God  and  man. 
Its  faith  is  a  fighting  force  conquering  the  world,  5  4. 

4.  Through  the  Holy  Spirit  the  regenerate  man  is  led 
to  repentance  and  confession  of  all  sins  committ-ed  after 
justification,  and  to  commit  them  to  the  intercession  of 
the  Advocate  or  high  priest,  i  :  9 ;  2  :  i.  Concerning  these 
sins  also,  none  of  which  are  unto  death,  God  is  pleased 
to  grant  forgiveness  at  the  intercession  of  His  people, 
5 :  16.  The  sin  unto  death — that  is  the  unpardonable 
sin — no  child  of  God  can  commit.  So  far  as  that  sin  is 
concerned  it  is  a  case  of  "non  posse  pecarri" — not  able 
to  sin,  5 :  17,  18. 

5.  The  Spirit's  anointing  of  the  Christian,  conferring 
assured  knowledge  of  acceptance  with  God  and  con- 
sciousness of  power  in  prayer  appears  in  the  following 
passages:  2:20,  27;  5:9,  10,  13,  15,  19. 

6.  The  Spirit's  sanctifying  power  perfecting  the  soul 
in  holiness  unto  complete  spiritual  likeness  to  our  Lord, 
appears  at  3:3.  This  is  a  progressive  work,  going  on 
from  strength  to  strength,  from  grace  to  grace,  from 
glory  to  glory,  even  as  Paul  so  graphically  put  it.  See 
II  Cor.  3:18. 


344  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

7.  The  Spirit's  work  in  the  glorification  of  our  bodies 
at  the  final  advent,  completing  the  likeness  to  our  Lord's 
glorified  body,  appears  at  3:2. 

The  View  of  the  Saved  Man 

1.  He  was  a  sinner,  ist  chapter  and  loth  verse:  "li 
we  say  that  we  have  not  sinned,  we  make  Him  a  liar, 
and  His  word  is  not  in  us."  The  Bible  knows  nothing 
of  a  man  who  never  sinned  except  our  Lord  himself. 

2.  He  is  a  pardoned  man,  2nd  chapter  and  12th  verse: 
"I  write  unto  you,  my  little  children,  because  your  sins 
are  forgiven  you  for  His  name's  sake."  Every  Chris- 
tion  is  a  justified  man.  He  is  also  a  regenerate  man. 
The  great  blessing  of  the  New  Covenant  is  the  forgive- 
ness of  sin.  That  comes  to  us  the  very  moment  that, 
by  faith,  we  accept  Jesus  Christ  as  our  Savior.  That 
is  justification. 

3.  Yet  this  regenerate  man,  this  justified  man,  will 
sin  until  sanctification  has  perfected  him  in  holiness. 

Now,  here  is  a  regenerated  man  and  a  forgiven  man. 
"If  we  say  (8th  verse,  ist  chapter)  that  we  have  no 
sin"  that  is  different  from  "if  we  say  we  have  not 
sinned."  "If  we  say  we  have  no  sin,  we  deceive  our- 
selves, and  the  truth  is  not  in  us,"  that  is,  in  the  regen- 
erated man  there  is  sin  of  some  kind ;  there  are  rem- 
nants of  depravity;  so  when  a  man  in  this  life  says,  "I 
am  perfect,  I  am  sinless,"  he  contradicts  God.  What, 
then,  is  the  remedy  for  sins  committeed  after  justifica- 
tion and  regeneration?  Let  us  look  at  the  2nd  chapter: 
"If  any  man  sin,  we  have  an  advocate  with  the  Father, 
Jesus  Christ,  the  righteous."  Then  at  the  9th  verse: 
"If  we  confess  our  sins.  He  is  faithful  and  just  to 
forgive  us  our  sins."    The  sins  committed  after  justifica- 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  (Cont.)        345 

tion,  what  about  them?  We  confess  them.  We  put 
them  in  the  hands  of  the  advocate,  the  great  high  priest. 
They  are  not  the  sins  of  the  unconverted  man,  of  a  lost 
man,  or  the  sins  of  a  child  of  the  devil,  but  are  the  sins 
of  a  child  of  God.  So  we  confess  them  and  put  them 
in  the  hands  of  the  advocate,  and  He  makes  intercession 
for  us,  and  through  the  intercession  of  Christ  we  receive 
forgiveness  for  the  sins  committed  after  justification. 
Even  Paul  said  this  of  himself.     (See  Phil.  3: 12-14.) 

In  confirmation  of  this  point  I  appeal  to  the  Christian 
experience.  We  know  how  we  felt  when  we  were  first 
converted,  that  all  our  sins  were  taken  away  and  that 
we  would  never  sin  again.  After  awhile  we  did  some- 
thing wrong,  and  whatever  is  wrong  is  wrong — our  con- 
science told  us  it  was  wrong.  We  said,  "I  know  I  have 
sinned."  Yet  that  was  after  justification.  If  a  man 
has  never  had  that  experience,  then  I  do  not  believe  that 
he  has  ever  had  any  experience.  Sometimes,  perhaps,  it 
took  a  long  while  to  get  ready  to  do  the  right  thing,  but 
ultimately  we  do  get  oflf  to  ourselves  and  say,  "Father, 
I  have  sinned  against  Thy  love,  against  Thy  grace.  My 
sins  pain  me;  I  am  distressed.  I  confess  my  sins.  God 
forgive  me  for  Christ's  sake,"  and  peace  comes  to  us. 
Not  the  peace  of  justification,  but  the  peace  of  a  forgiven 
child. 

4.  But  this  saved  man  progresses  to  a  goal  of  perfec- 
tion, 3  :3. 

I  have  now  presented  so  far  five  views  in  order  to  an 
understanding  of  this  letter,  as  follows: 

1.  The  view  of  the  lost  world. 

2.  The  view  of  the  Father,  and  what  He  does  in  saving 
the  world. 

3.  The  view  of  the  Son,  and  what  He  does  in  the  sav- 
ing of  the  world. 


346  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

4.  The  view  of  the  Spirit,  and  what  He  does  in  the  sav- 
ing of  the  world, 

5.  A  view  of  the  saved  sinner  himself. 

That  far  only  have  we  gone,  and  yet  we  have  gone  to 
the  very  heart  of  the  letter. 


QUESTIONS 

1.  On  this  letter's  view  of  the  Father,  answer: 

(i)  What  two  words  express  His  nature? 

(2)  How  was  His  love  manifested  toward  the  lost  world? 

(3)  In  what  way  did  He  intend  His   Son  to  save  the 

world? 

(4)  What  relation  towards  Himself  did  He  provide  for 

sinners? 

2.  On  the  view  of  the  Son,  answer: 

(i)  What  was  His  name  in  eternity  before  the  world 
was? 

(2)  How  was  He  manifested  to  the  world? 

(3)  Was  this  a  real  assumption  of  human  nature  or  only 

an  appearance? 

(4)  How  was  this  incarnation  demonstrated  to  human 

sense? 

(5)  What  the   importance   of   this    doctrine  of   His   in- 

carnation? 

(6)  In  His  incarnation  in  what  two  ways  did  He  effect 

salvation  of  the  world? 

(7)  In  what  one  act  were  both  accomplished? 

(8)  Explain  "This  is  He  that  came  by  water." 

(9)  Explain  "This  is  He  that  came  by  blood." 

(10)  Show  the  Spirit's  witness  that  He  came  both  ways. 

(11)  Show  how  the  witness  of  the  Spirit,  the  water  and 

the  blood  do  nozv  agree  in  their  testimony  to  the 
one  act  of  salvation. 

(12)  How   is   that    propitiation   made   available    for    sins 

after  justification? 

(13)  In  what  way  is  it  made  available  at  the  end  of  the 

world  in  the  perfecting  of  salvation? 

3.  On  the  view  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  answer: 

(i)  What   in  general    terms    is   the  office   work   of   the 

Spirit  in  salvation? 
(2)   In  seven   distinct  particulars  show  what  the   Spirit 

accomplishes,  citing  passages  in  the  letter  for  proof. 

4.  On  the  letter's  view  of  the  saved  man,  cite  at  least  five 
distinct  stages  of  this  man,  citing  passages  from  the  letter  for 
each. 


XXVIII 

FIRST   LETTER   OF   JOHN,   EXPOSITION— 
(Concluded) 

Scriptures:   All  references 

SO  far,  in  the  logical,  not  chronological,  exposition 
of  this  great  feat  of  theological  discussion,  we 
have  considered : 

1.  Its  view  of  a  lost  world — the  agent,  means,  and 
condition  of  its  downfall. 

2.  Its  view  of  th'e  Father,  in  the  salvation  of  the  lost 
world. 

3.  Its  view  of  the  Son,  in  thd  salvation  of  the  lost 
world. 

4.  Its  view  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  in  th^  salvation  of  the 
lost  world. 

5.  Its  view  of  the  sinner  after  his  salvation,  and  in 
what  the  salvation  consists. 

We  now  consider: 

6.  Its  evidences  zvhich  discriminate  hetzveen  a  child  of 
God  and  a  child  of  the  dez'il.  The  legal,  or  external,  dif- 
ference has  been  considered  somewhat,  and  consists  of 
two  particulars: 

(a)  The  child  of  God  has  been  forgiven  all  past  sins 
on  account  of  the  Savior's  propitiation,  or  vicarious 
sacrifice,  accepted  by  faith. 

(b)  Forgiveness  of  his  sins  after  justification  is  secured 
by  confession,  and  putting  the  case  in  the  hands  of  the 
advocate,   or   high  priest,   who   makes   intercession    for 

34.7 


348  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

him  on  the  ground  of  the  same  propitiation  which  avails 
for  sins  after  justification  as  well  as  for  sins  before 
justification.  The  legal  ground  for  forgiveness  is  the 
same  in  both  cases.  On  the  same  meritorious  ground  it 
is  provided  that  sins  after  justification  may  be  forgiven 
at  the  intercession  of  the  saints,  here  on  earth. 

The  spiritual,  or  internal,  difference  has  also  been  con- 
sidered somewhat  in  the  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  which 
consists : 

(i)  In  the  new  birth  which  gives  a  holy  disposition 
to  the  mind,  and  makes  its  subject  a  child  of  Gcfd  by 
regeneration. 

(2)  In  the  cleansing  from  the  defilement  of  sin  by 
the  Spirit's  application  of  the  atoning  blood. 

(3)  In  the  progressive  work  of  the  sanctification  of 
the  soul  after  the  new  birth. 

(4)  In  the  redemption  of  the  body  into  its  final  like- 
ness to  our  Lord's  body  at  His  final  advent. 

But  we  are  now  to  consider  the  discriminating  evi- 
dences subjectively  and  practically,  i.  e.,  the  evidences 
as  knowable  to  the  man  himself  in  his  own  experience, 
and  as  manifested  to  others  in  his  life.  If  a  man  be 
acquitted  in  God's  sight,  and  if  he  be  forgiven  time  and 
again  after  justification,  and  if  he  be  born  anew,  and  if 
he  be  cleansed  from  the  defilement  of  sin,  and  if  the 
progressive  work  of  the  sanctification  be  going  on  in 
him,  we  may  expect  to  find  some  consciousness  and  reali- 
zation on  his  part  of  these  great  changes,  and  we  have  a 
right  to  expect  some  dififerences  in  his  life,  observable  to 
all  men  acquainted  with  his  life. 

These  are  the  matters  discussed,  not  exclusively,  but 
particularly  in  chapters  3  :  10-24 14:7-21.  While  the  two 
distinct  things  are  mingled  in  the  apostle's  discussion,  yet 
because  of  this  distinction  we  consider  them  separately. 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  349 

Subjective  knowledge  of  sahation. — 3 :  14  "We  know 
that  we  have  passed  out  of  death  into  life  because  we 
love  the  brethren."  Love  is  an  affection  of  the  heart  of 
which  we  may  be  conscious.  It  is  a  fruit  of  the  Holy 
Spirit.  Or,  as  expressed  in  4 : 7-8 :  "Love  is  of  God ;  and 
every  one  that  loveth  is  begotten  of  God  and  knoweth 
God.  He  that  loveth  not  knoweth  not  God;  for  God  is 
love."  This  love  is  set  forth  in  opposition  to  the  passion 
of  hate.  "Cain  was  of  the  evil  one,  and  slew  his 
brother."  "Whoso  hateth  his  brother  is  a  murderer." 
Love  is  unselfish.  Th^e  Father's  love  was  manifested  in 
sending  His  only  begotten  Son  into  the  world  that  we 
might  live  through  Him,  4 : 9.  The  Son's  love  was  mani- 
fested in  that  He  laid  down  His  life  for  us,  3 :  16.  So  if 
we  love  God  in  His  Son,  in  His  people,  in  His  cause,  it 
will  manifest  itself,  not  merely  in  profession,  but  in  deed 
and  truth,  3: 18. 

How  easy  to  understand  the  apostle's  question :  "But 
whoso  hath  this  world's  goods,  and  beholdeth  his  brother 
in  need,  and  shutteth  up  his  compassion  for  him,  how 
doth  the  love  of  God  abide  in  him?"  And  how  unequiv- 
ocal the  declaration:  "If  a  man  say,  I  love  God,  and 
hateth  his  brother,  he  is  a  liar ;  for  he  that  loveth  not 
his  brother  whom  he  hath  seen  cannot  love  God  whom 
he  hath  not  seen." 

That  love  is  a  matter  of  consciousness  is  further  evi- 
dent from  its  effect  on  our  consciences.  Conscience  is 
the  inward  monitor  which  passes  judgment  on  matters 
of  right  and  wrong.  This  judgment  is  according  to  the 
light  it  has.  Even  in  the  case  of  the  heathen  with  only, 
the  light  of  nature  and  of  dim  tradition,  it  accuses  or 
else  excuses.  Its  verdict  against  us  is  very  painful ;  its 
verdict  of  acquittal  gives  peace. 

The  standard  of  our  letter  will  not  accept  mere  words. 


350  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

but  deeds:  "My  little  children,  let  us  not  love  in  word, 
neither  with  the  tongue ;  but  in  deed  and  truth.  Hereby 
we  shall  know  that  we  are  of  the  truth,  and  shall  assure 
our  hearts  before  Him,  because  if  our  heart  condemn 
us,  God  is  greater  than  our  heart,  and  knoweth  all  things." 
Again,  faith  differentiates  between  the  child  of  God  and 
the  child  of  the  devil.  This  letter  says,  "Whosoever  be- 
lieveth  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ  is  begotten  of  God ;  and 
whosoever  loveth  Him  that  begat  loveth  Him  also  that 
is  begotten." 

One  convicted  in  conscience  of  sin  realizes  "a  sense  of 
guilt  and  condemnation,"  but  when  justified  by  faith, 
there  comes  instead  peace  and  rest.  This  is  a  matter  of 
consciousness.  Moreover,  under  conviction  of  sin  we 
fear — we  are  conscious  of  that  fear — but  this  letter 
says,  "There  is  no  fear  in  love :  perfect  love  casts  out 
fear  because  fear  hath  punishment ;  and  he  that  feareth 
is  not  made  perfect  in  love,"  4:  18. 

But  another  question  arises:  It  is  true  I  may  know 
that  I  have  passed  out  of  death  into  life  if  I  love  the 
brethren,  but  how  may  I  know  that  I  love  the  brethren? 
"Hereby  we  know  that  we  love  the  children  of  God,  when 
we  love  God  and  do  His  commandments.  For  this  is 
the  love  of  God,  that  we  keep  his  commandments ;  and 
His  commandments  are  not  grievous."  In  other  words, 
we  know  it  by  being  conscious  of  the  spirit  of  obedience. 
"Whereupon,  O  King  Agrippa,  I  was  not  disobedient  to 
the  heavenly  vision."  The  saved  soul  puts  itself  under 
divine  orders:  "Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have  me  to  do?" 
The  concern  is  not:  Why  must  I  do  this  thing?  nor,  may 
not  some  other  thing  do  just  as  well  ?  but  simply  to  knov/ 
what  God  has  commanded. 

The  spirit  of  faith,  the  spirit  of  love,  the  spirit  of 
obedience,  felt  in  our  souls,  approved  in  our  consciences, 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  351 

attest  the  Christian  to  himself.  And  there  is  yet  another 
test:  "Beloved,  now  are  we  children  of  God,  and  it  is 
not  yet  made  manifest  what  we  shall  be.  We  know 
that  if  He  shall  be  manifested,  we  shall  be  like  Him; 
for  we  shall  see  Him  even  as  He  is.  And  every  one  that 
hath  this  hope  set  on  Him  purifieth  himself  even  as  He  is 
pure."  This  is  the  progress  of  grace  in  the  soul;  we 
call  it  sanctification.  It  is  the  doctrine  taught  also  by 
Paul :  "But  we  all,  with  unveiled  face,  beholding  as  in  a 
mirror  the  glory  of  the  Lord,  are  transformed  into  the 
same  image  from  glory  to  glory,  even  as  from  the  Lord 
the  Spirit."  We  ought  to  be  able  to  know  whether  we 
are  making  progress  in  holiness. 

There  is  also  a  final  test  in  relation  to  the  world.  We 
have  seen  in  the  preceding  chapter  a  view  of  the  whole 
world  lying  in  the  wicked  one,  and  opposed  to  grace. 
This  furnishes  us  an  additional  double  test.  If  we  love 
God  in  His  Son  and  people  and  cause,  then  it  follows  that 
we  cannot  love  the  world  as  dominated  by  Satan  and 
swayed  by  its  worldly  passions,  but  will  conquer  it. 
Hence  this  letter  declares :  "Love  not  the  world,  neithec 
the  things  that  are  in  the  world.  If  any  man  love  the 
world,  the  love  of  the  Father  is  not  in  him.  For  all 
that  is  in  the  world,  the  lust  of  the  flesh  and  the  lust  of 
the  eyes  and  the  vainglory  of  life,  is  not  of  the  Father, 
but  is  of  the  world.  *  *  *  For  whatsoever  is  begot- 
ten of  God  overcometh  the  world,  and  this  is  the  victory 
that  hath  overcome  the  world,  even  our  faith.  And  who 
is  he  that  overcometh  the  world  but  he  that  believeth 
that  Jesus  is  the  Son  of  God?" 

But  there  is  a  practical  side  attesting  the  Christian 
to  the  outsider.  The  outsider  cannot  know  our  inner 
experiences  of  faith,  hope,  love,  joy  and  peace.  He 
hears  our  professions,  and  holds  them  credible  only  so 


352  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

far  as  manifested  in  the  life.  Our  Lord  himself  fixed 
that  standard:  "A  tree  is  known  by  its  fruits."  So,  of 
professed  children  of  God  it  may  be  said,  "By  their 
fruits  shall  ye  know  them."  Hence  our  letter  says, 
"My  little  children,  let  no  man  lead  you  astray.  He  that 
doeth  righteousness  is  righteous,  even  as  he  is  righteous ; 
he  that  doeth  sin  is  of  the  devil.  *  *  *  Whosoever 
is  begotten  of  God  doeth  no  sin,  because  his  seed  abideth 
in  him;  and  he  cannot  sin,  because  he  is  begotten  of 
God.  In  this  the  children  of  God  are  manifest,  and  the 
children  of  the  devil :  whosoever  that  doeth  not  right- 
eousness is  not  of  God,  aeither  he  that  loveth  not  his 
brother." 

Evidences  Which  Differentiate  God's  Preachers  From 
the  Devil's  Preachers. — As  God  is  light,  and  the  devil 
is  darkness ;  as  God  is  love  and  the  devil  is  hate ;  as  God 
would  save  the  world  which  the  devil  has  destroyed; 
as  God  sends  a  Savior  of  the  world  to  be  a  propitiation 
for  sin  and  the  devil  resists  Him ;  as  Father  and  Son 
send  the  Holy  Spirit  to  make  effective  the  propitiation; 
we  ought  to  be  able  to  discriminate  between  God's  preach- 
ers and  the  devil's  preachers.  We  would  naturally  expect 
the  devil  to  influence  his  agents  to  deny  the  incarnation 
by  which  the  Son  is  manifested,  His  being  a  propitiation 
for  sin  in  that  incarnation,  that  propitiation  effected  by 
His  vicarious  death  on  the  cross,  the  miracles  which 
attested  Him,  the  witness  of  the  Spirit,  and  the  necessity 
of  the  Spirit's  work  of  regeneration,  sanctification,  resur- 
rection, and  glorification. 

And  quite  naturally  we  would  expect  God's  preachers 
to  be  influenced  to  preach  and  insist  on  all  those  vital 
things  which  the  devil's  preachers  deny.  The  great  issue 
would  necessarily  center  on  the  nature,  person,  and 
offices  of  the  Savior.    Knowing  also  the  wiles  of  the  devil, 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  353 

we  would  expect  him  to  influence  his  preachers  to  creep 
privily  into  churches,  and  into  the  ministry,  and  into 
professors'  chairs  in  Christian  schools,  instructed  from 
headquarters  to  praise  Christ  as  a  man,  while  denying 
His  deity  and  pre-existence,  throw  bouquets  at  His  mor- 
ality while  denying  His  vicarious  propitiation,  commend 
His  example  while  denying  His  expiation  ;  in  other  words, 
as  saving  us  in  any  other  way  than  by  His  death  on  the 
cross. 

On  this  point  this  letter  says,  "Little  children,  it  is 
the  last  hour:  and  as  ye  heard  that  anti-christ  cometh, 
even  now  hath  there  arisen  many  anti-christs ;  whereby 
we  know  that  it  is  the  last  hour.  They  went  out  from 
us,  but  they  were  not  of  us;  for  if  they  had  been  of 
us  they  would  have  continued  with  us;  but  they  went 
out  that  they  might  be  made  manifest  that  they  all  are 
not  of  us.  And  ye  have  an  anointing  from  the  Holy 
One,  and  ye  know  all  things.  I  have  not  written  unto  you 
because  ye  know  not  the  truth,  but  because  ye  know  it, 
and  because  no  lie  is  of  the  truth.  Who  is  the  liar  but 
he  that  denieth  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ?  This  is  the 
anti-christ,  even  he  that  denieth  the  Father  and  the  Son. 
Whosoever  denieth  the  Son,  the  same  hath  not  the 
Father;  He  that  confesseth  the  Son  hath  the  Father 
also.  *  *  *  Beloved,  believe  not  every  spirit,  but 
prove  the  spirits,  whether  they  are  of  God;  because 
many  false  prophets  are  gone  out  into  the  world.  Hereby 
know  ye  the  Spirit  of  God :  Every  Spirit  that  confesseth 
that  Jesus  Christ  is  come  in  the  flesh,  is  of  God."  God 
became  incarnate.  The  highest  object  of  the  incarnation 
was  to  expiate  sin  as  a  propitiatory  offering.  On  these 
two  points  we  may  expose  the  anti-christs.  To  the  bitter 
end  they  fight  the  doctrine  that  God,  the  pre-existing 
Son,  was  conceived  of  the  Holy  Spirit  and  born  of  the 


354  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Virgin  Mary.    See  John  i :  i,  14;  I  John  i :  i  and  Luke 
1:31-35;  I  John  1:7;  2:2,  22;  3:16;  4:10;  5:6-8. 

This  letter  stresses  the  incarnation,  the  propitiation, 
the  blood,  and  obedience,  and  it  is  precisely  by  these  that 
we  are  to  test  all  professors  of  the  Christian  religion, 
showing  who  are  for  Christ  and  who  are  anti-christs. 
If  preacher  or  teacher  hold  not  these  vital  doctrines, 
whatever  other  merit,  they  are  not  of  us  and  should 
go  out  from  us.    Hence  the  injunction: 

Believe  Not  Every  Spirit,  but  Prove  the  Spirits,  1:1, 
2:  "From  the  beginning  was  *  ♦  *  the  Word  of 
life,  and  the  life  was  manifested."  This  attests  His 
deity  and  incarnation. 

4:2,  3:  "Every  spirit  that  confesses  that  Jesus  Christ 
is  come  in  the  flesh  is  of  God;  and  every  spirit  that 
confesses  not  Jesus  is  not  of  God ;  and  this  is  the  spirit 
of  the  anti-christ." 

3 :  22 :  "Who  is  the  liar  but  he  that  denieth  that  Jesus 
is  the  Christ?  This  is  the  anti-christ,  even  he  that 
denieth  the  Father  and  the  Son." 

4:14,  15:  "The  Father  hath  sent  the  Son  to  be  the 
Sainor  of  the  world.  Whosoever  shall  confess  that  Jesus 
is  the  Son  of  God,  God  abideth  in  him."  This  attests  the 
purpose  of  His  coming. 

4:9,  10 :  "God  hath  sent  His  only  begotten  Son  into  the 
world  that  we  might  live  through  Him.  *  ♦  *  God 
sent  His  Son  to  be  the  propitiation  for  our  sins." 

2:21:  "He  is  the  propitiation  for  our  sins ;  and  not  for 
ours  only,  but  also  for  the  whole  world."  This  attests 
the  way  He  saves. 

3:5:  "He  was  manifested  to  take  away  our  sins." 
3:16:  "He  laid  down  His  life  for  us."     This  attests 
the  way  propitiation  is  accomplished. 

5 !  6 :  "This  is  He  that  came  by  water  and  blood." 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  355 

5:8:  "There  are  three  who  bear  witness — the  Spirit, 
and  the  water,  and  the  blood;  and  the  three  agree  in 
one." 

1:7:  "The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ,  His  Son,  cleanseth 
us  from  all  sin." 

3:2,  7,  8:  "li  He  shall  be  manifested  (second  advent) 
we  shall  be  like  Him  *  *  *  and  every  one  that  hath 
this  hope  set  on  Him  purifieth  himself,  even  as  He  is 
pure.  *  *  *  Let  no  man  lead  you  astray;  he  that 
doeth  righteousness  is  righteous.  *  *  *  He  that 
doeth  sin  is  of  the  devil." 

4:18-19:  "Let  us  not  love  in  word,  neither  with  the 
tongue ;  but  in  deed  and  truth.  Hereby  shall  we  know 
that  we  are  of  the  truth  and  shall  assure  our  heart  before 
Him." 

3: 10:  "In  this  the  children  of  God  are  manifest;  and 
the  children  of  the  devil :  whosoever  doeth  not  righteous- 
ness is  not  of  God,  neither  he  that  loveth  not  his  brother." 

The  author  would  most  solemnly  impress  these  pas- 
sages on  the  reader's  heart.  They  constitute  the  touch- 
stone which  exposes  all  lying  spirits,  false  prophets,  false 
preachers,  false  teachers  in  Christian  schools,  false  pro- 
fessors of  religion.  From  these  passages  it  is  evident 
that  no  man  should  be  fellowshipped  as  a  preacher,  or 
even  retained  as  a  church  member,  who  denies  the  essen- 
tial deity  of  Jesus  Christ,  His  incarnation.  His  vicarious 
death  as  a  propitiation  for  sin ;  nor  one  whose  profession 
of  these  doctrines  does  not  bear  fruit  unto  love  and 
holiness. 

A  mere  verbal  orthodoxy  is  hypocrisy,  and  is  more 
hateful  to  God  and  more  hurtful  to  man  than  avowed 
infidelity.  I  am  quite  sure  that  a  strict  application  of 
this  test  would  empty  thousands  of  pulpits,  hundreds 
of  professors'  chairs  in  Christian  schools,  and  deplete 


356  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

thousands  of  church  rolls.  This  emptying  and  depleting 
would  not  be  deplorable  but  helpful.  It  would  amount 
to  a  great  revival.  As  they  depart  from  us,  we  could 
say  with  this  letter:  "They  went  out  from  us,  but  they 
were  not  of  us,  for  if  they  had  been  of  us  they  would 
have  continued  with  us;  but  they  went  out,  that  they 
might  be  made  manifest  that  they  all  are  not  of  us." 

Knowledge  by  the  Holy  Spirit  vs.  the  Gnosis  of  the 
Lycus  Valley  Philosopher,  and  the  Agnosis  of  the  Modern 
Philosopher. — This  letter  is  the  secret  of  certain  positive 
knowledge,  and  attributes  the  subjective  knowledge  or 
assurance  of  our  acceptance  with  God^  and  all  other 
positive  knowledge  of  theological  matters  to  the  witness 
and  unction  of  the  Holy  Spirit:  "And  as  for  you,  the 
anointing  which  ye  received  abideth  in  you,  and  ye  need 
not  that  any  one  teach  you ;  but  as  His  anointing  teacheth 
you  concerning  all  things,  and  is  true,  and  is  no  lie,  and 
even  as  is  taught  you,  ye  abide  in  Him,"  *  *  *  "And 
it  is  the  Spirit  that  beareth  witness,  because  the  Spirit 
is  the  truth.  For  there  are  three  who  bear  witness — the 
Spirit,  the  water,  and  the  blood:  and  the  three  agree  in 
one.  H  we  receive  the  witness  of  men,  the  witness  of 
God  is  greater ;  for  the  witness  of  God  is  this :  that  He 
hath  borne  witness  concerning  His  Son.  He  that  be- 
lieveth  on  the  Son  of  God  hath  the  witness  in  him:  he 
that  believeth  not,  God  hath  made  Him  a  liar,  because 
he  hath  not  believed  in  the  witness  that  God  hath  borne 
concerning  His  Son.  And  the  witness  is  this :  That  God 
gave  unto  us  eternal  life,  and  this  life  is  in  His  Son.  He 
that  hath  the  Son  hath  the  life;  he  that  hath  not  the 
Son  of  God  hath  not  the  life.  These  things  have  I 
written  unto  you  that  ye  may  know  that  ye  have  eternal 
life,  even  unto  you  that  believe  on  the  name  of  the  Son 
of  God." 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  357 

It  is  written  against  the  Lycus  Valley  Gnosticism. 
That  philosophy  ignored  the  word  revealed  and  inspired 
by  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  denied  any  illumination  by  Him 
for  its  interpretation  and  claimed  instead  an  intuitive 
subjective  human  knowledge  that  claimed  to  serve  all 
the  purposes  of  a  portable  Bible.  Each  man  became  his 
own  standard,  and  found  in  himself  an  answer  to  all 
questions  of  life  and  doctrine.  All  concerning  Christ 
and  salvation  that  appealed  to  his  inner  man  he  ac- 
cepted— all  else  he  rejected.  While  he  might  admit  some 
temporary  educational  good  in  revelations,  and  some 
transitional  good  in  the  Spirit's  illumination,  yet  all  this 
would  become  antiquated  as  man  progressed  into  a  new 
religion.  In  modern  times  the  philosopher  aflfects 
agnosticism,  which  rejects  all  supernaturalism,  and 
accepts  nothing  not  demonstrable  by  unaided  human 
science.  The  vital  elements  of  the  gospel  they  declare 
unknowable. 

It  was  the  precise  object  of  this  letter  to  lead  its 
readers  out  of  all  misty  incertitude,  and  into  positive, 
definite,  assured  knowledge.  "I  know,"  "we  know," 
"that  ye  may  know,"  is  its  distinguishing  mark.  And 
this  knowledge  extends  into  the  realm  of  prayer,  and 
unto  the  unpardonable  sin :  "These  things  have  I  written 
unto  you  that  ye  may  know  that  ye  have  eternal  life, 
even  unto  you  that  believe  on  the  name  of  the  Son  of 
God.  And  this  is  the  boldness  which  we  have  tov/ard 
Him :  that  if  we  ask  anything  according  to  His  will,  He 
heareth  us.  And  if  we  know  that  He  heareth  us  what- 
soever we  ask,  we  know  that  we  have  the  petitions  which 
we  have  asked  of  Him.  If  any  man  see  his  brother  sin- 
ning a  sin  not  unto  death,  he  shall  ask  and  God  will  give 
him  life  for  them  that  sin  not  unto  death.  There  is  a  sin 
unto  death ;  not  concerning  this  do  I  say  that  he  should 


358  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

make  request.  All  unrighteousness  is  sin,  and  there  is 
a  sin  not  unto  death. 

"We  know  that  whosoever  is  begotten  of  Godsinneth 
not;  but  he  that  was  begotten  of  God  keepeth  himself, 
and  the  evil  one  toucheth  him  not.  We  know  that  we 
are  of  God,  and  the  whole  world  lieth  in  the  evil  one. 
And  we  know  that  the  Son  of  God  is  come,  and 
hath  given  us  an  understanding,  that  we  know  Him 
that  is  true,  and  we  are  in  Him  that  is  true,  even  in 
His  Son,  Jesus  Christ.  This  is  the  true  God  and 
eternal  Hfe." 

The  source  of  the  knowledge  is  unmistakable:  "And 
ye  have  an  anointing  from  the  Holy  One,  and  ye  know 
all  things.  *  ♦  *  And  as  for  you  the  anointing  which 
ye  received  of  Him  abideth  in  you,  and  ye  need  not 
that  any  one  teach  you ;  but  as  His  anointing  teacheth 
you  concerning  all  things,  and  is  true,  and  is  no  lie,  and 
even  as  is  taught  you,  ye  abide  in  Him." 

These  passages  are  in  full  accord  with  our  Lord's 
words,  as  reported  by  this  same  John  in  his  Gospel: 
"And  I  will  pray  the  Father,  and  He  shall  give  you 
another  Comforter,  that  He  may  be  with  you  forever, 
even  the  Spirit  of  Truth,  whom  the  world  cannot  receive, 
for  it  beholdeth  Him  not,  neither  knoweth  Him,  for  He 
abideth  with  you  and  shall  be  in  you.  *  *  *  But  the 
Comforter,  even  the  Holy  Spirit,  whom  the  Father  will 
send  in  my  name,  He  shall  teach  you  all  things,  and  bring 
to  your  remembrance  all  that  I  said  unto  you.  *  *  * 
But  when  the  Comforter  is  come,  whom  I  will  send  unto 
you  from  the  Father,  even  the  Spirit  of  Truth,  which 
proceedeth  from  the  Father,  He  shall  bear  witness  of 
me.  *  *  *  Howbeit  when  He,  the  Spirit  of  Truth, 
is  come,  He  shall  guide  you  into  all  the  truth:  for  He 
shall  not  speak  from  Himself ;  but  what  things  ever  He 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  359 

shall  hear,  these  shall  He  speak;  and  He  shall  declare 
unto  you  the  things  that  are  to  come." 

And  now  before  we  pass  away  from  this  great  letter 
we  must  answer  a  very  serious  question,  not  without 
difficulty.  What  is  the  exact  meaning  of  3:9,  "Who- 
soever is  begotten  of  God  doet^  no  sin,  because  his  seed 
abideth  in  him,  and  he  cannot  sin  because  he  is  begotten 
of  God?"  Or,  as  expressed  in  a  preceding  verse :  "Who- 
soever abideth  in  Him  sinneth  not;  whosoever  sinneth 
hath  not  seen  Him,  neither  knoweth  Him?"  Or,  in  other 
words,  does  the  apostle  mean  that  every  regenerate  man 
is  absolutely  impeccable,  not  "posse  non  peccari,"  i.  e., 
"able  not  to  sin,"  but  "non  posse  peccari,"  i.  e.,  "not  able 
to  sin"? 

Those  who  adopt  the  view  that  the  regenerate  man  is 
absolutely  impeccable  must  take  one  or  the  other  of  the 
following  positions,  none  of  which  is  satisfactory  to  the 
author : 

( 1 )  When  a  man  accepts  Christ,  he  is  no  longer  under 
law,  but  under  grace,  and  where  there  is  no  law  there  is 
no  sin.  This  is  antinomianism ;  it  hides  behind  a  fal- 
lacy. Christians  are  not  indeed  under  the  law  as  a  means 
of  life,  i.  e.,  by  a  perfect  obedience.  But  the  Christian 
is  under  law  to  Christ.  To  violate  any  rule  of  right  is 
sin,  no  matter  by  whom  committed. 

(2)  The  Christian  united  to  Christ  stands  sinless  in 
Him.  As  Christ  stood  for  the  sinner,  all  his  offenses  are 
charged  to  Christ's  account.  This  explanation  is  foreign 
to  the  apostle's  whole  line  of  thought.  He  is  not  dis- 
cussing the  imputation  of  righteousness. 

(3)  A  much  more  plausible  explanation  is  borrowed 
from  Rom.  7:17-21.  The  explanation  is  that  the  renewed 
nature  does  not  and  cannot  sin,  but  this  man  in  the 
renewed  life  possesses  another  nature,  from  which  the 


360  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Christian's  sins  outflow.  There  are  two  "egos" — the 
"I"  that  would  not,  and  the  "I"  that  yet  does.  The 
author  is  quite  sure  that  the  apostle  John  has  not  in  mind 
this  refinement, 

(4)  Some  who  reject  the  absolutely  impeccable  inter- 
pretation, understand  the  word  thus :  "Whosoever  abideth 
in  Him  sinneth  not  as  a  rule  of  his  life — sinneth  not 
habitually."  This  view  is  better  expressed  by  Sawtelle 
in  the  American  Commentary  on  I  John  3:6:  "Now, 
what  is  the  interpretation  of  John's  language?  We 
answer  by  saying  that  in  this  and  in  similar  cases  he 
looks  to  an  ideal  or  principle.  He  presents  what  the 
divine  union  involves  in  its  fullness  that  will  be  when 
our  union  with  Christ  shall  be  developed  in  experience 
and  actual  life  to  its  normal  and  perfected  state.  Abid- 
ing in  Christ  in  its  fulfilled  degree  will  involve  a  par- 
taking in  full  of  the  holiness  of  Christ.  This  ideal  had 
not  yet  been  fully  reached  by  John,  and  his  brethren, 
though  the  union  had  richly  commenced  and  was  going 
on.  But  he  looks  forward  to  their  perfected  union  with 
the  Lord,  and  predicates  of  it  complete  purity;  nay,  he 
even  speaks  of  it  as  if  it  were  present,  since  the  begin- 
ning in  all  grace  involves  the  ending,  the  germ,  the  full 
unfolding;  as  the  New  Testament  calls  every  Christian 
a  saint,  not  because  he  has  reached  that  ideal,  but  with 
reference  to  the  perfection  which  is  yet  to  be.  John 
gives  us  the  lazv  or  principle  of  union  with  Christ.  Purity 
characterizes  this  union,  and  so  far  as  the  union  is 
realized  and  fulfilled,  so  far  there  will  be  purity,  until 
the  ideal  becomes  fully  real,  and  then  by  the  very  law 
of  the  union,  there  will  be  utter  sinlessness.  The  union 
is  a  holy  principle,  and  the  more  it  is  developed  the  more 
it  bears  personal  holiness  with  it.  The  Christian,  there- 
fore, by  the  very  law  of  his  union  with  Christ,  is  one 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  361 

who  is  reaching  on  to  moral  purity ;  and  if  not  approach- 
ing the  ideal,  he  may  doubt  his  spiritual  state.  Purity 
is  the  law,  the  tendency  of  divine  union." 

The  author  has  much  respect  for  this  view  of  Dr, 
Sawtelle,  but  it  fails  to  meet  the  words  "doeth  no  sin." 
Hence  he  submits: 

John's  own  explanation,  3 : 6,  9,  must  be  interpreted  in 
harmony  with  the  rest  of  his  letter.  He  must  not  be 
interpreted  as  inconsistent  with  himself  and  put  in  square 
contradiction  with  both  previous  and  subsequent  state- 
ments.   Let  us  look  at  some  of  these  statements : 

In  1 :8  he  says,  "If  we  say  we  have  no  sin,  we  deceive 
ourselves  and  the  truth  is  not  in  us."  This  is  said  of  the 
Christian.  He  is  not  referring  to  our  state  before  regen- 
eration, for  that  is  separately  expressed  in  1:10:  "If 
we  say  we  have  not  sinned,  we  make  him  a  liar,  and  his 
word  is  not  iri  us."  He  is  telling  what  to  do  with  sins 
committed  after  justification.  "If  we  confess  our  sins, 
he  is  faithful  and  righteous  to  forgive  us  our  sins,  and 
to  cleanse  us  from  all  unrighteousness.  *  *  *  My 
little  children,  these  things  write  I  unto  you  that  ye  may 
not  sin.  And  if  any  man  sin,  we  have  an  advocate  with 
the  Father,  Jesus  Christ  the  righteous." 

We  have  already  seen  his  treatment  of  the  progress  in 
sanctification,  3:3.  In  5:17  he  declares  every  act  of 
unrighteousness  to  be  sin,  no  matter  by  whom  committed, 
regenerate  or  unregenerate.  And  he  specifically  exhorts 
us  to  pray  for  the  forgiveness  of  a  sinning  brother,  5  :  16. 

It  would  contradict  every  book  in  the  Bible,  and  the 
experience  of  every  Christian  that  ever  lived  to  affirm 
that  no  regenerate  man  ever  sins  at  all.  It  would  deny 
the  need  of  the  continuous  intercession  of  the  High 
Priest,  our  Advocate  with  God.  It  is  suggested  for  due 
consideration   that   John   explains    himself   in   5 :  13-18. 


362  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

Here  we  have  the  object  of  the  whole  letter,  that  we  may 
know  we  have  eternal  life.  While  every  act  of  unright- 
eousness is  sin,  not  every  one  excludes  from  eternal 
life.  A  Christian  may  sin,  but  not  unto  death,  the  oppo- 
site of  the  eternal  life.  These  sins  are  pardonable,  and 
are  pardoned  even  at  the  intercession  of  the  saints.  There 
is  a  sin  unto  death.  It  is  unpardonable  and  not  the 
subject  of  intercession. 

And  now  to  put  the  matter  beyond  doubt,  he  repeats 
his  former  words :  "We  know  that  whosoever  is  born  of 
God  sinneth  not,"  i.  e.,  sinneth  not  unto  death,  as  the 
context  demands.  Which  is  further  evident  from  what 
he  continues  to  say :  "but  he  that  was  born  of  God  keep- 
eth  himself,  and  the  evil  one  toucheth  him  not." 

This  is  the  author's  answer  to  the  question  raised.  It 
means  that  no  regenerate  man  sinneth  in  a  way,  or  to 
the  extent,  that  his  eternal  life  is  disturbed.  He  sinneth 
not  unto  death. 

John's  idea  of  the  unpardonable  sin  agrees  with  our 
Lord's  teaching  at  Math.  12:32;  Mark  3:29-30,  and 
Paul's  teaching  in  Heb.  10 :  26-29.  It  is  rejection  of  the 
Spirit's  witness  to  our  Lord,  I  John  5:8-11. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Give  the  legal  grounds  which  distinguish  the  child  of  God 
from  the  child  of  the  Devil,  and  why  and  how  attained  in  three 
particulars. 

2.  Give  the  spiritual  grounds  in   four  particulars. 

3.  What  parts  of  this  letter  discuss  the  difference  as  appre- 
hended by  the  Christian  in  subjective  knowledge  and  as  evidenced 
to  an  outsider  in  practical  life,  i.  e.,  How  may  he  know  and  how 
may  they  know? 

4.  Subjectively,  then,  how  may  a  Christian  know  that  he  has 
passed  out  of  death  into  life? 

5.  How  is  this  known  through  his  conscience? 

6.  How  may  a  Christian  know  that  he  loves  the  brethren? 

7.  How  may  the  Christian  know  his  state  by  applying  this  test 
to  the  world? 


FIRST  LETTER  OF  JOHN  363 

8.  How  is  the  Christian's  salvation  evident  to  an  outsider? 

9.  Why  should    we   naturally  expect   a   discernible   difference 
between  Christ's  preachers  and  the  devil's  preachers? 

10.  In   trying   the   spirits   whether   they   be   of   God,  cite   the 
passages  in  this  letter  which  constitute  the  test. 

11.  What  should  be  our  attitude  towards  preachers,  teachers 
in  Christian  schools  and  church  members  who  fail  under  this  test? 

12.  What  would  be  the  result  of  a  faithful  application  of  this 
test  ? 

13.  Which  the  more  hurtful,  hypocrisy  or  avowed  infidelity? 

14.  How  would  this  console  us  if  the  test  were  rigidly  applied 
when  we  saw  such  members  leaving  us? 

15.  Who  the  source  of  all  the  Christian  knowledge? 

16.  What  question  is  raised  by  I  John  3  :6,  9,  and  what  four 
unsatisfactory  answers,  and  then  what  John's  own  explanation? 


XXIX 

INTRODUCTION    AND    EXPOSITION    OF   THE 
SECOND  AND  THIRD  LETTERS  OF  JOHN 

Scripture:  Second  and  Third  John 

WE  take  up  now  the  Second  Letter  of  John,  and 
follow  with  the  Third  Letter  of  John.  By  way 
of  introduction  to  both  books,  I  have  these  few 
words  to  say: 

First,  what  does  the  author  of  these  two  books  say  of 
himself?  In  both  he  calls  himself  "the  elder"  (Greek — 
"presbuteros"),  which  is  a  designation  of  office;  and 
not  "presbutes,"  meaning  an  old  man.  All  of  the  apos- 
tles were  elders.  Peter  calls  himself  an  elder.  He  says 
to  the  elders:  "I,  who  am  g^  elder,  write." 

Second,  to  whom  do  some  attribute  these  two  letters? 
To  a  "John  the  Presbyter,"  who  is  said  to  have  lived  in 
the  second  century  at  Ephesus. 

Third,  what  the  reply  to  this? 

(i)  There  is  no  trustworthy  evidence  that  there  was 
any  such  man  as  John  the  Presbyter  living  in  the  sec- 
ond century  at  Ephesus;  it  is  very  doubtful. 

(2)  The  historical  evidence  is  in  every  way  sufficient 
to  show  that  John  the  apostle  is  the  author  of  both  of 
these  letters.  I  will  not  cite  this  historical  evidence,  but 
I  will  include  among  those  who  refer  to  it,  Irenaeus,  who 
was  a  disciple  of  Polycarp,  who  was  a  disciple  of  John, 
and  Clement  of  Alexandria,  and  Tertullian  of  Africa, 


SECOND  AND  THIRD  LETTERS  OF  JOHN     365 

and  quite  a  number  of  others  all  testify  that  the  apostle 
John  wrote  both  these  books. 

(3)  The  internal  evidence  is  equally  conclusive.  In 
these  letters  are  these  expressions :  "Live  in  the  truth," 
"walk  in  the  truth,"  "love  one  another,"  "and  this  is 
love,  that  ye  walk  in  His  commandments,"  every  word 
of  verses  7  and  9,  and  others  equally  characteristic  in  the 
3rd  letter  are  all  Johannine,  that  is,  expressions  of  John. 
Certainly  whoever  wrote  I  John  wrote  both  of  these 
letters. 

(4)  It  is  characteristic  of  the  apostle  John  to  refer  to 
himself  indirectly.  Even  in  his  gospel  he  says,  "That 
disciple  whom  Jesus  loved."  In  his  first  letter  he  does 
not  mention  his  own  name.  Here  he  says,  "the  elder," 
and  that  is  just  like  him.  Only  in  the  book  of  Revelation 
does  he  give  his  own  name. 

(5)  There  is  a  clear  reference  in  HI  John  10  to  the 
power  exercised  by  the  apostles  only — the  judgment 
power. 

(6)  It  is  quite  natural  that  short  letters  addressed  to 
individuals  about  local  or  personal  matters  should  more 
slowly  receive  general  recognition. 

The  Second  Letter  of  John 

To  whom  is  this  letter  addressed?  This  answer  con- 
sists of  four  parts : 

I.  The  author  confesses  himself  unable  to  appreciate 
the  mystical  sense  imported  by  some  into  the  very  plain 
language  of  a  letter  not  apocalyptic  on  its  face,  so  as  to 
render  the  Greek  word  "kuria"  in  verse  one,  as  "lady," 
and  then  claim  that  "lady"  means  a  church.  And  then 
construe  the  Greek  word  "tekna"  "children,"  as  members 
of  the  church.    And  yet  again  at  the  end  of  the  letter  to 


366  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

so  construe  the  Greek  word,  "adelphes,"  "sister,"  to  make 
it  mean  "church,"  is  to  him  too  far  fetched  for  serious 
consideration.  And  yet  all  through  the  ages,  and  partic- 
ularly among  our  hardshell  brethren,  is  this  theory  held. 
They  say,  "The  Elder  to  the  elect  lady,"  meaning  some 
elect  church  called  lady,  but  it  all  sounds  silly  to  me. 

2.  The  word  "Kuria,"  English  "Cyria,"  is  a  proper 
name  like  "Gains,"  "Timothy,"  "Titus,"  "Philemon,"  and 
so  this  should  be  rendered,  'The  elder  to  the  elect  Cyria." 
That  is  a  woman's  name. 

3.  While  "kuria"  literally  means  "lady,"  yet,  etymo- 
logically,  every  Bible  name  means  something:  "Jacob" 
means  "supplanter,"  "Israel"  means  "One  who  prevails 
with  God,"  "Jesus"  means  "Savior."  All  the  proper 
names  of  the  Bible  have  literal  meanings,  yet  we  would 
be  foolish  to  render  these  proper  names  by  the  etymolog- 
ical meaning  of  the  word. 

4.  It  is  utterly  foreign  to  New  Testament  usage  to 
call  a  woman  "a  lady."  That  is  the  way  colored  people 
do.  The  Bible  does  not  call  a  woman  "a  lady."  We  do 
not  find  this  word,  "kuria,"  anywhere  else  in  the  New 
Testament,  but  we  find  "woman"  in  many  places.  And 
the  Bible  never  calls  a  church  a  lady.  Now,  in  the  book 
of  Revelation,  a  woman  (not  a  lady)  symbolizes  the 
church.  That  is  an  apocalyptic  book,  confessedly  sym- 
bolic, but  in  the  Bible  the  females  are  women — not  ladies. 
This  good  sister's  name  was  Cyria.  "Kuria"  and  "Cyria" 
mean  the  same  thing. 

So  this  letter  is  addressed  to  a  good  woman,  and  her 
name  is  Cyria,  and  I  am  glad  that  one  book  of  the  Bible 
is  addressed  to  a  woman. 

5.  What  is  the  occasion  of  this  letter?  The  apostle 
seems  to  be  stopping  with  the  children  of  Cyria's  sister. 
The  sister  is  supposed  to  be  dead,  and  from  her  children 


SECOND  AND  THIRD  LETTERS  OF  JOHN    367 

he  gets  some  information  about  Cyria,  who  was  one  of 
his  converts,  and  hence  he  was  well  acquainted  with  her. 
She  did  not  live  at  the  same  place,  of  course,  but  he  gets 
some  information  from  these  children  about  Cyria,  and 
the  information  is  mixed.  He  says,  "I  have  found  that 
certain  of  thy  children  are  walking  in  the  truth."  Now 
that  implies  that  certain  others  of  them  were  not  walking 
in  the  truth,  so  it  is  mixed  information.  Apparently 
from  these  Christian  children  he  hears  a  good  report  of 
some  of  Cyria's  children,  and  this  gives  him  great  joy, 
and  prompts  him  in  love  and  courtesy  to  write  a  note  to 
their  aunt  Cyria,  sending  greetings  from  the  nephews 
and  nieces.  I  have  done  that  many  a  time.  I  have  gone 
to  a  place  and  found  people  that  were  acquainted  with 
some  old  friend  of  mine,  and  from  them  I  learn  the  latest 
information  about  that  old  friend,  and  as  a  matter  of 
courtesy,  while  in  their  house,  I  write  a  letter  or  note  to 
that  old  friend,  and  extend  the  family  greetings. 

In  this  note  he  commends  her  fidelity  and  the  righteous 
walk  of  some  of  her  children.  But  this  letter  is  not 
merely  a  formal  courtesy.  Cyria  seems  to  be  living  where 
the  Gnostic  philosophy  prevails.  Its  traveling  advocates 
claim  to  be  preachers  of  the  gospel,  and  he  solemnly 
warns  her  not  to  receive  them  into  her  house,  nor  to  bid 
them  God-speed,  lest  she  become  a  partaker  of  their 
sins.  Their  method  was  not  to  propagate  their  heresy 
from  the  pulpit,  but  by  private  household  visitation,  and 
this  danger  was  real  and  great  to  Cyria's  household. 
Hence  his  words  in  the  7th  and  8th  verses,  which  are 
as  follows:  "For  many  deceivers  are  gone  forth  into 
the  world,  even  they  that  confess  not  that  Jesus  Christ 
Cometh  in  the  flesh.  This  is  the  deceiver  and  the  anti- 
christ. Look  to  yourselves  that  ye  lose  not  the  things 
which   we   have   wrought,   but  that   ye   receive   a    full 


368  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

reward."  The  letter  assumes  that  the  present  Christian 
attainment  of  herself  and  family  is  the  result  of  his 
labors:  "Lose  not  the  things  which  we  have  wrought." 
I  taught  you  certain  things  and  you  accepted  them. 
These  deceivers  come  around,  these  anti-christs,  and 
deny  what  I  so  plainly  taught,  that  Christ  was  come  in 
the  flesh."  This  implies  a  personal  acquaintance  with 
Cyria  on  John's  part,  and  accounts  for  the  familiarity, 
tenderness  and  earnestness  of  his  letter. 

As  I  have  said  before,  there  is  a  possible  implication 
that  some  of  her  children  are  already  affected  by  this 
error — certain  of  her  children  were  not  walking  in  the 
truth,  for  if  he  had  meant  all  of  her  children  he  would 
not  have  put  it  that  way.  It  implies  that  others  of  them 
did  not  walk  in  the  truth,  and  that  implies  a  situation 
that  accounts  for  the  earnestness  and  solemnity  of  the 
letter.  The  wolf  has  already  been  prowling  around  that 
family  fold.  It  is  very  probable  that  these  anti-christs 
in  the  guise  of  Christian  preachers  have  already  been 
guests  in  Cyria's  house.  He  says,  "Do  not  receive  them 
into  your  house."  And  already  there  are  premonitions  of 
a  divided  household,  and  the  danger  of  a  further  lapse 
from  what  the  apostle  had  taught. 

Verse  9,  when  taken  with  5  and  6,  throws  additional 
light  on  the  situation.  It  declares  that  the  very  plea  of 
these  heretics  is  that  they  seem  to  have  assured  Cyria 
that  she  need  not  give  up  her  love  for  her  old  teacher,  nor 
break  away  from  what  the  apostle  had  wrought,  but  only 
to  go  on  somewhat  beyond  it,  follow  new  commandments, 
not  denying  the  old,  but  confirming  the  new  ones — new 
interpretations,  new  light.  They  were  "progressives." 
Hence  the  earnest  words :  "I  beseech  thee,  Cyria,  not 
according  to  any  new  commandments  which  these  people 
give  you,   or  any   new   interpretation   about  love,   but 


SECOND  AND  THIRD  LETTERS  OF  JOHN     369 

according  to  the  old  commandments,  I  beseech  thee  let 
us  love  one  another.  The  old  commandments  interpret 
and  identify  love  as  walking  in  God's  commands,  and 
not  in  any  new  orders.  That  is  love  that  you  walk  in 
His  commandments.  If  you  do  follow  the  new,  you  do 
surrender  what  we  apostles  have  taught,  and  you  do  lose 
your  reward." 

And  now  comes  the  greatest  text  against  the  pro- 
gressives in  the  whole  Bible:  "He  who  abides  not  in 
the  teachings  of  Christ,  but  goes  onward  into  something 
new,  hath  not  God.  Even  to  receive  into  your  house 
these  deceivers,  and  bid  them  God-speed,  makes  you  a 
partaker  of  their  sin."  I  say  that  this  verse  9  is  a  golden 
text,  a  New  Testament  jewel  against  the  progressives, 
who  seek  to  reinterpret  or  go  beyond  the  faith  once  for 
all  delivered  to  the  saints.  I  preached  on  it  once  for  a 
solid  hour.  My  heart  was  never  more  inflamed.  I  first 
quoted  Jude's  words:  "The  faith  once  for  all  delivered 
to  the  saints,"  and  then  took  up  newspaper  notices  from, 
men  esteemed  great  that  these  old  notions  are  obsolete 
— we  need  a  new  religion,  we  need  to  go  on.  Now,  says 
the  apostle:  "Whosoever  abideth  not  in  the  teachings 
of  Christ,  but  goeth  onward,  he  hath  not  God."  If  there 
is  any  fire  in  us,  we  ought  to  be  able  to  preach  a  sermon 
from  that  text.  And  here  let  me  say  that  all  of  the  short 
books  of  the  New  Testament  are  exquisite  gems  that 
justify  their  insertion  in  the  canon.  That  one  9th  verse 
justifies  putting  this  letter  in  the  Bible.  We  do  not  get 
that  thought  anywhere  else.  The  fact  that  this  is  written 
to  a  woman,  a  hospitable  woman,  who  has  unwittingly 
received  into  her  house  as  guests  men  claiming  to  be 
preachers,  but  who  undermine  the  faith  of  some  of  her 
children,  and  who  tell  her:  "You  need  not  give  up  what 
you  believe,  you  can  go  on  loving  your  apostle  John,  but 


370  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

we  have  a  new  interpretation  of  love,  according  to  new 
commandments,  and  you  can  stand  on  what  he  taught 
and  what  he  wrought,  but  do  not  stay  there,  take  a  step 
farther;  there  are  new  things  to  be  received,"  render  it 
all  the  more  remarkable.  Why,  I  imagine  I  can  hear 
them.  They  are  the  children  of  the  devil.  President 
Eliot,  of  Harvard,  is  nothing  but  an  atheist  and  is  worse 
than  Tom  Paine,  for  Tom  Paine  was  at  least  a  deist. 

John  says,  "And  now  I  beseech  thee,  lady,  not  as 
though  I  wrote  to  thee  new  commandments,  but  that 
which  we  had  from  the  beginning,  that  we  love  one  an- 
other." It  is  love  that  we  keep  His  commandments,  and 
not  walk  after  new  commandments. 

The  Third  Letter  of  John 

It  is  evident  from  the  comparison  of  the  characteristic 
expressions  common  to  this  and  the  first  letter,  that  one 
man  wrote  both,  and  it  is  equally  evident  that  whoever 
wrote  the  first  paragraph  of  the  first  letter  wrote  also  the 
first  paragraph  of  John's  Gospel. 

It  is  further  evident  from  verse  lo  of  this  letter  that 
its  author  possessed  the  apostolic  power  to  punish  by 
extraordinary  judgment  resistance  to  inspired  authority. 
We  may  accept  it,  therefore,  without  hesitation,  that  the 
apostle  John  wrote  this  letter. 

Though  written  to  an  individual  about  local  matters 
concerning  a  particular  church,  it  is  of  permanent  king- 
dom value,  because  of  the  light  it  throws  on  New  Testa- 
ment missionary  operations,  and  because  of  its  revelation 
of  the  subjection  of  a  New  Testament  church  to  the  evil 
domination  of  one  ambitious  and  unscrupulous  man — a 
prototype  of  thousands  since  his  day. 

There  cannot  be  a  clearer  teaching  on  the  evil  possible 


SECOND  AND  THIRD  LETTERS  OF  JOHN     371 

to  a  particular  church,  under  bossism,  and  on  the  invalid- 
ity of  church  decisions  which  violate  fundamental  New 
Testament  law.  This  is  at  least  one  clear,  authoritative, 
apostolic  decision  that  such  outrageous  church  action  is 
entitled  to  no  respect  within  the  kingdom. 

A  church  is  under  law  to  Jesus  Christ,  and  never  inde- 
pendent of  His  paramount  authority.  Mere  church 
authority  cannot  set  aside  the  authority  of  our  Lord. 
It  is  true  that  what  a  church  decides  on  matters  of 
discipline  binds  or  looses  in  heaven  (Math.  18:17-18), 
but  only  when  Christ  is  with  them  (Math.  18:19-20), 
and  His  will  is  followed  under  the  guidance  of  the  Holy 
Spirit.  It  was  Christ's  law  that  His  apostles  be  received 
as  himself  (Math.  10:40),  but  here  is  a  man  who  rejects 
an  apostle,  maliciously  slanders  him  and  rebels  against 
his  authority.  It  was  Christ's  law  that  missionaries 
should  be  sent  to  all  the  nations  (Math.  28: 18-19),  but 
here  is  a  man  who  rejects  them  coming  in  Christ's 
"name,"  and  duly  accredited  by  apostolic  letter.  Christ 
prescribed  the  steps  of  procedure  in  the  disciplining  of 
a  brother  by  the  church  who  sins,  and  who  will  not  yield 
to  either  private  labor  or  church  authority  (Math. 
18:15-17).  But  this  man  counts  obedience  to  Christ  a 
sin,  and  utterly  disregards  our  Lord's  own  words  as  to 
methods  of  procedure  in  discipline,  and  forces  the  sub- 
servient church  to  reject  His  accredited  messengers,  and 
to  arbitrarily  exclude  those  whose  only  offense  was  obe- 
dience to  the  Lord.  It  was  a  glaring  instance  of  devilish 
usurpation  of  power,  of  unmistakable  high  treason  and 
rebellion.  A  thousand  times  in  ecclesiastical  history 
has  this  great  lesson,  nowhere  else  so  clearly  taught  as 
here,  been  needed  to  show  that  merely  getting  a  majority 
of  a  particular  church  to  vote  a  certain  way  is  not  per  se 
a  righteous  verdict  in  God's  sight.    This  one  great  lesson 


372  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

alone   forever  justifies  the  incorporation  of  this  short 
letter  into  the  accepted  canon  of  the  Holy  Scriptures. 

But  let  us  analyze  the  great  little  book,  presenting  an 
order  of  thought  both  logical  and  chronological : 

ANALYSIS 

I 

I.  In  verses  five  to  eight  we  find  the  New  Testament 
law  of  foreign  missions  : 

(a)  For  the  sake  of  the  Name  they  go  forth. 

(b)  They  take  nothing  of  the  Gentiles,  who  are  as  yet 
unsaved,  and  so  not  appreciating  labors  in  their  own 
behalf,  may  not  be  counted  on  to  pay  the  expenses  of 
their   own   evangelization. 

(c)  Those  already  evangelized,  whether  individuals  or 
churches,  should  welcome,  entertain,  and  set  forward 
these  men  worthily  of  God  on  their  way  to  their  field, 
and  sustain  them  there  until  the  heathen  field  becomes 
itself  not  only  self-sustaining,  but  a  new  center  of  sup- 
port to  the  fields  beyond. 

This  was  Paul's  method  of  taking  wages  of  other 
churches  to  preach  the  gospel  in  heathen  Corinth  (II 
Cor.  II : 8),  and  as  he  says,  "Having  hope  that,  as  your 
faith  groweth,  we  shall  be  magnified  in  you  according 
to  our  rule  unto  further  abundance,  so  as  to  preach  the 
gospel  to  the  parts  even  beyond  you"  (II  Cor.  lo:  15-16). 

(d)  In  this  cooperation,  in  aid  to  the  missionary,  the 
helper  shared  the  honor  of  the  missionary's  labor,  becom- 
ing a  fellow  helper  to  the  truth. 

(e)  It  needs  to  be  particularly  noted  that  it  zvas  not 
the  plan  for  each  church  to  send  out  its  own  missionaries, 
limiting  its  obligations  to  only  its  own  missionaries.  If 
this  had  been  the  plan,  the  particular  church  to  which 


SECOND  AND  THIRD  LETTERS  OF  JOHN     373 

Gaius  and  Diotrephes  belonged  was  within  its  rights  in 
refusing  to  receive  and  help  these  missionaries  sent  out 
by  the  Ephesian  church. 

The  churches  of  Macedonia  that  helped  Paul  preach  at 
Corinth  did  not  send  him  out,  but  the  far-off  church  at 
Antioch  in  Syria.  All  the  churches  are  equally  related 
to  the  kingdom,  and  are  bound,  as  opportunity  offers,  to 
cooperate  in  kingdom  activities,  without  regard  to  the 
fact  that  only  some  one  particular  church  ordains  a  man 
and  sends  him  out. 

This  is  an  exceedingly  important  law  of  New  Testa- 
ment missions.  The  whole  New  Testament  condemns 
the  idea  that  obligation  on  a  particular  church  to  help 
missions  is  limited  to  the  missionaries  sent  out  by  itself. 
Thus  in  five  distinct  particulars  this  short  letter  gives 
us  the  law  of  New  Testament  missions. 

2.  In  accordance  with  this  law,  certain  missionaries  are 
sent  out  from  Ephesus  to  go  to  the  Gentiles.  To  accredit 
them  and  provide  help  on  the  way  to  their  field  the 
apostle  John  writes  a  letter  to  a  church  situated  on  the 
way  to  their  field. 

3.  Unfortunately  this  church  is  (i)  under  the  domin- 
ion of  an  ambitious,  unscrupulous,  anti-missionary,  one 
Diotrephes.  Whether  he  was  a  preacher,  or  long-horned 
deacon,  or  merely  an  unofficial  boss  is  immaterial.  There 
have  been  thousands  like  him,  eager  for  pre-eminence  in 
the  church,  insisting  on  having  his  own  arbitrary  way, 
following  "a  rule  or  ruin  policy."  Cursed  is  the  church 
that  is  ridden  by  such  "an  old  man  of  the  sea."  (2)  This 
man  forced  the  church  to  reject  the  apostolic  letter, 
"prating  against  the  apostle  with  wicked  words."  (3) 
He  forced  the  church  to  refuse  to  receive  the  missionaries 
apostolically  accredited.  (4)  This  did  not  content  him ; 
he   forbade   any   individual   member   of  the   church   to 


374  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

receive  them.  (5)  Gaius  did  receive  them  in  spite  of 
this  unlawful  interdict.  (6)  The  missionaries  came 
before  the  church  and  bore  grateful  testimony  to  the 
loving  hospitality  of  Gaius.  (7)  Whereupon  Diotrephes 
forced  the  church  to  exclude  Gaius  and  his  sympathizers. 
(8)  Brethren  who  knew  all  the  facts  reported  the  case 
to  John,  bearing  witness  to  the  fidelity  of  Gaius. 

4.  Whereupon  John  writes  this  letter  to  Gaius,  thor- 
oughly endorsing  his  course  and  condemning  the  course 
of  Diotrephes,  and  sends  it  by  Demetrius,  whom  he 
highly  commends :  "Demetrius  hath  the  witness  of  all 
men  and  of  the  truth  itself ;  yea,  we  also  bear  witness ; 
and  thou  knowest  our  witness  is  true."  Demetrius  doubt- 
less goes  to  the  scene  of  the  strife  as  an  apostolic  dele- 
gate, with  full  powers  to  dispose  of  the  case,  just  as  Paul 
sent  Titus  to  Crete  to  set  in  order  irregularities  there 
(Tit.  1:5),  and  as  he  exhorted  Timothy  to  tarry  at 
Ephesus  (I  Tim.  1 13  and  3:  14)  to  regulate  afifairs  there. 
In  this  letter,  as  Paul  did  to  the  Corinthians,  he  threatens 
to  come  with  apostolic  judgment  in  case  Diotrephes 
refuses  to  yield  to  the  authority  of  his  accredited  dele- 
gate. It  would  gratify  our  natural  curiosity  to  know 
positively  the  issue  of  the  case  in  the  hands  of  Deme- 
trius, as  we  do  know  the  issue  at  Corinth  in  the  hands 
of  Titus.  Judging  from  other  New  Testament  cases  we 
may  infer  a  favorable  issue  here,  that  Diotrephes  was 
•divested  of  power  to  do  further  harm,  that  Gaius  and 
his  friends  were  restored  to  the  church  fellowship,  that 
the  missionaries  were  worthily  helped  on  their  way. 
We  may  even  charitably  hope  that  Diotrephes,  like  the 
incestuous  man  at  Corinth  and  the  rebels  there  against 
apostolic  authority,  repented  of  his  sins ;  yet  seldom  does 
a  man  repent  who  goes  to  the  lengths  this  man  did.  He 
was  perilously  near  to  the  sin  against  the  Holy  Spirit, 


SECOND  AND  THIRD  LETTERS  OF  JOHN     375 

which  is  an  eternal  sin,  and  hath  never  forgiveness, 
neither  in  this  world  nor  in  the  world  to  come. 

5.  Apart  from  the  valuable  law  of  missions  and  the 
history  of  this  remarkable  case,  which  is  a  priceless 
legacy  to  the  churches,  there  are  yet  to  be  considered 
three  valuable  lessons: 

(i)  This  letter  answers  clearly  a  great  question,  to- 
wit:  Just  how  rich  does  the  New  Testament  allow  a 
Christian  to  become?  Or,  what  is  the  New  Testament's 
limit  to  the  amount  of  wealth  a  Christian  may  lawfully 
acquire  ? 

In  my  early  pastorate  at  Waco  I  put  this  very  question 
to  my  Sunday  School,  to  be  answered  the  following 
week.  There  chanced  to  be  present  a  millionaire  from 
Newark,  N.  J.,  who  had  made  his  money  in  Texas, 
Morgan  L.  Smith.  He  approached  me,  when  the  school 
was  dismissed,  saying  that  the  question  interested  him 
personally,  and  as  he  would  leave  before  the  following 
Sunday,  would  take  it  as  a  favor  if  I  would  give  him 
the  answer  in  advance.  I  read  to  him  this  passage  from 
HI  John :  "Beloved,  I  pray  that  in  all  things  thou  mayest 
prosper  and  be  in  health,  even  as  thy  soul  prospereth," 
which  I  thus  interpreted:  John  would  not  pray  for 
unlawful  things.  He  did  pray  that  Gains  might  prosper 
financially  just  as  far  as  was  consistent  with  his  pros- 
perity of  soul.  Therefore,  it  was  lawful  to  acquire  a 
million,  ten  millions,  any  number  of  millions,  if  the 
acquisition  did  no  harm  to  the  soul.  But  in  many  cases 
wealth  as  gained  or  as  used  starved  and  sickened  the 
soul.  To  them  any  amount  was  unlawful  that  worked 
such  result.  It  was  good  for  such  men  that  God  kept 
them  poor ;  if  He  allowed  to  them  an  increase  of  wealth 
at  the  expense  of  the  soul,  it  was  in  anger  and  as  j, 
judgment.    Prosperity  makes  fools  of  many.    The  same 


376  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES 

law  applied  to  health.  Some  could  be  well  all  the  time 
and  the  soul  the  better  for  it.  Others,  like  Jeshurun, 
kicked  when  they  waxed  fat.  Many  may  echo  the  Bible 
statement:  "Before  I  was  afflicted  I  went  astray."  An 
old  mother  said:  "You  have  to  break  the  legs  of  some 
children  to  raise  them." 

(2)  The  second  lesson  is  one  of  solemn  warning  to 
church  bosses.  A  church  is  the  temple  of  God:  "Him 
that  destroyeth  the  temple  of  God,  will  God  destroy," 
quotes  Paul  to  the  Corinthians.  Along  the  shores  of 
history  lie  the  wrecks  of  many  once  useful  churches: 
along  the  same  shores  are  the  wrecks  of  their  destroyers. 

(3)  There  remains  the  lesson  arising  from  the  em- 
phatic use  of  the  word,  "Name,"  in  the  7th  verse: 
"For  the  sake  of  the  Name  they  went  forth."  Already 
that  word  stood  for  all  that  Christ  was  and  taught  and 
did.  It  went  into  ecclesiastical  history  just  as  John  here 
starts  it.  In  the  dark  ages  it  was  the  Christian's  pass- 
word in  dangerous  places,  acting  as  an  introduction  and 
a  protection,  like  the  Masonic  grip  and  password.  When 
the  hounds  of  persecution  pursued  the  martyr,  and  when 
heathen  or  papal  interdict  closed  against  him  the  door  of 
sympathy,  shelter,  and  help,  he  would  knock  at  doors 
and  say,  "In  the  Name."  The  brother  Christian  within, 
though  a  stranger,  and  it  may  be  of  another  nation,  would 
recognize  the  password,  and  give  shelter  and  help  at  the 
risk  of  his  own  life.  In  this  way  also  they  safely  dis- 
tributed their  literature. 

"For  the  sake  of  the  Name"  should  be  our  watchword 
and  motive. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  does  the  author  of  these  letters  say  of  himself? 

2.  To  whom  have  some  attributed  their  authorship  and  your 
reply  thereto. 


SECOND  AND  THIRD  LETTERS  OF  JOHN     377 

3.  Who  the   author   according  to   historical   evidence? 

4.  How  does  the   internal   confirm  the   historical? 

II  John 

5.  Why  not  render  "Kuria,"  lady,  and  then  construe  lady  to 
mean  a  church,  and  "sister"  a  church  and  "children"  church 
members?     Give  the  argument  of  the  author. 

6.  To  whom  then  addressed? 

7.  State  the  occasion  of  the  letter. 

8.  What  words  of  the  letter  indicate  John's  previous  knowl- 
edge of  Cyria? 

9.  What  words  may  imply  that  some  of  her  children  were 
not  walking  in  the  truth? 

10.  What,  from  the  implications  of  the  letter,  was  the  plea 
of  these  heretics? 

11.  How  does  the  letter  reply? 

12.  What  the  golden  text  of  the  letter? 

III  John 

13.  Why  this  letter  a  valuable  part  of  the  inspired  canon  of 
Scripture? 

14.  Quote  and  apply  the  N.  T.  law  as  violated  by  Diotrephes. 

ANALYSIS 

15.  What  the  N.  T.  law  of  foreign  missions  in  verses  5-8? 

16.  Prove  the  violation  of  N.  T.  law  and  precedent  when  a 
church  limits  its  foreign  mission  obligation  to  missionaries  sent 
out  by  itself. 

17.  What  Texas  plan  recommends  this  error? 

18.  State  the  history  of   this   case   conforming  to   that  law. 

19.  Give,  in  eight  particulars,  the  reception  of  these  mis- 
sionaries by  the  church  of  which  Gaius  and  Diotrephes  were 
members. 

20.  How  does  John  answer  the  appeal  of  the  case  to  him? 

21.  Show  from  similar  cases  under  Paul  that  Demetrius  was 
sent  as  apostolic  delegate,  with  the  threat  of  the  apostle's  ov/n 
coming  in  judgment,  if  the  delegate  be  not  heard. 

Other  Lessons 

22.  What  great  question  does  this  letter  answer  and  how? 
Illustrate. 

23.  What  the   second   lesson? 

24.  What  the  third? 

25.  What  two  great  texts  in  this  letter? 


Date  Due 

0  20  37 

^ 

f) 

BS2735  .C319 

The  Pastoral  Epistles  of  Paul  and  I  and 

Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


1    1012  00068  8582 


